


Scorched Origins

by ErisLuna35



Series: The Hijacked Adventures of Ladybug and Chat Noire [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Original Work
Genre: Alternate Universe, Angst, Blood, Different Miraculous Users, Gen, Guilt, Headcanons on how the miraculous works, Lots of Angst, Mentions of Violence, Miraculous Ladybug cures all, Near Death, Origin Story, Violence is there but it's not very detailed, but it gets better, but it won't be explained how here, canon technically did exist, except the ensuing angst, i don't know how to tag, it'll get some references here and there, partners getting used to each other, promise!, remember when I said that this AU is going to get darker and edgier later on?, this is why, vague mentions of Marinette and Adrien
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-28
Updated: 2019-08-26
Packaged: 2019-10-18 06:39:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 23,458
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17575790
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ErisLuna35/pseuds/ErisLuna35
Summary: The beginning was different for everyone...(Origin Story for my other fic, 'The Hijacked Adventures of Ladybug and Chat Noire')





	1. Prologue: First Impressions

**Author's Note:**

> Hello readers!  
> So this is the origins story for 'The Hijacked Adventures of Ladybug and Chat Noire'  
> It's gonna have at least five parts, and a bonus chapter or two.  
> Hopefully I'll get it all out before March. Fingers crossed.  
> I have got to stop procrastinating.  
> I'm kind of in a rut for the main story, so might as well post what works I did managed to finish.  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy reading!

**Tikki**

 

 

Convincing my charge to accept his duties as a Ladybug is proving to be harder than I initially expected.

 

“On second thought, maybe I’m not up to this hero business,” my chosen, the bespectacled boy with dark blue hair rambled. “I have school, class president duties, Judo, the flower shop…”

 

His name is Shizuke Midorikawa. This boy has repeatedly passed the guardian’s test... while at the same time, obliviously sabotaging the guardian’s chances to test anyone else. His eagerness to help people is unmatched. One would think he’d jump at the chance to save his school…

 

“Hey! Maybe you should get Fuyu to be the new hero! She’s strong! She’s the most heroic person I know! And most importantly, she has the piercings for it! Four of them in fact!”

 

But at the prospect of piercing his ears, he’s chickening out. Granted, there’s a long list of other things that made him want to back out. Having to fight a raging fire monster with a yoyo is probably at the top of the list.

 

And there’s that ever familiar look in his eye that tells me that he doesn’t believe he’s good enough for this. It’s a sadly common trait among my charges. But that’s what I’m here for.

 

“Shizuke, you’re the chosen one,” I stressed firmly. “It has to be _you_.”

 

“I can’t-“

 

He abruptly stopped. It seems like something caught his eye.

 

I followed his gaze to his monitor showing a live broadcast of the attack. _Someone_ was following the monster. From the look of recognition in Shizuke’s face, I can conclude that this is someone he greatly cares for.

 

Suddenly, his entire demeanor completely changed. His mouth turned into a firm line, his doe brown eyes hardened, and he turned to me.

_All his doubts were replaced with resolve._

 

“… All I have to do is say ‘Spots on’, right?”

 

Excitement bubbled up within me. There is hope for this charge yet!

 

“AND you have to wear the Miraculous!” I said, pushing the earrings to his face.

 

His determination instantly faltered. But I’m not giving up. I’m sure he can overcome his strange aversion to piercing his ears to save someone’s life!

 

“Uhh…” he was grasping for an excuse, his hesitation seeping back in. His eyes were darting around his room, looking for a way out, the scissors in his hands snipping in agitation.

 

“Please, set your priorities straight! What’s a pair of pierced ears compared to the safety of your friend?”

 

“Aha!” Shizuke grabbed the earrings and went to his desk, pulling out an eraser. The boy began cutting the end of the eraser into small cubes.

 

“What are you-“

 

“What’s important is that I have to have the Miraculous on me right?”

 

“… Yes. But what does this have to do with-“

 

With a quick snip of his scissors, a button from his sleeve cuffs dropped. He calmly did the same to his other sleeve.

 

“What if I wear it like this?” Shizuke picked up one of the earrings and pinned it on his cuff. He slid the eraser bit into the cuff to seal the needle. He did the same to his other sleeve and showed me his handiwork. “Will this work?”

 

He repurposed the earrings into cufflinks. He found a way around his problem. His reasoning may be foolish but I can’t deny his creativity.

 

“Yes,” I smiled proudly at my charge. “This will work.”

 

Though the arrangement didn’t seem ideal at first, this boy has potential. Under all that stiffness, he has the creative spark of a Ladybug.

 

He let out a relieved sigh. “Okay then. Is there anything else I should know?”

 

“Oh! You’re not going to fight alone. You’ll have a certain _black cat_ for a partner.”

 

“Got it. Tikki! Spots on!”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

**Plagg**

 

 

“So with this ring, I can transform into a superhero like the red spandex guy on tv?” asked my new chosen.

 

This time, I got a crimson haired girl named Blair Crawford. She’s harder to read than my usual overemotional chosen. So far, she seems willing to jump into the hero biz.

 

“Oh, Tikki’s out already?” I poked my head out of the roll of toilet paper I was playing in and looked at the TV screen on her bedroom wall. Looks like Tikki’s chosen has already jumped into the fight without us.

 

“{ _STOP DESTROYING SCHOOL PROPERTY!!!_ }” the red spandex guy yelled as he gutsily jumped at the burning champion. One thing’s for sure, Tikki’s got a weird one.

 

My new chosen coughed to return my attention to her question. Demanding much?

 

“To answer your question, yep. And the red spandex guy’s your partner. You do most of the fighting, while he’ll be in charge of fixing stuff.”

 

“Hmm…” my chosen carefully slid the ring on like it’s the most precious thing she ever had. Whenever her eyes weren’t glued to that ring, she’s stealing glances at the picture hanging on the wall – a portrait of a happy family while there were still four of them instead of two. Loneliness hiding behind a ‘cool’ façade seems to be a staple among my wielders. “What powers do I get?”

 

Ooh... Now this is new. Usually, I get the reckless half of the dynamic duo but this one is actually willing to wait and listen to me explain things. I look back at the screen showing Tikki’s navy blue haired chosen currently yelling at the akuma. This will be amusing to watch.

 

“You get the power of destruction, enhanced senses and physical abilities, a baton that can extend to an unlimited length, and an indestructible suit,” as I enumerated this, Tikki’s boy got blasted with a ball of fire and came out of it unharmed. Way to demonstrate my point, lucky bug.

 

My chosen narrowed her emerald green eyes. “How are we supposed to defeat Scorch?”

 

“Simple. Destroy the possessed item, make sure your partner purifies the akuma that pops out, and Scorch will return to normal.”

 

She raised a brow at the screen showing the fire guy’s flames growing along with his anger while fighting the noisy new bug hero.

 

“… He doesn’t look like he has anything on him.”

 

Fair point. He looks more like a bon fire with legs than a human with raging fire powers. But I don’t want to think too hard about the technical stuff.

 

“Sure he does! Just leave it to Tikki and her chosen to purify the akuma.”

 

“What happens if my partner doesn’t purify the akuma?”

 

“Nothing pretty. Seriously. _Make sure he purifies it_ ,” I emphasized, not wanting a repeat of the same mistake made by the last duo who had to fight an enigmatic butterfly villain. That would be a drag I’d rather not deal with ever again. “You ask too many questions. Do you want to do this or not?”

 

Her emerald eyes are practically gleaming as her lips tilted up to a Cheshire cat grin, like the answer to that question is obvious. Anyone can tell from her stance alone how determined she is.

_This is her dream becoming a reality._

 

“Okay,” she said with a flip of her long crimson hair. “I’ll do this. What do I have to do to transform?”

 

That’s all the confirmation I need to know that she’s ready to be the next Black Cat.

 

“Just say ‘Claws out’, and the Miraculous will do the rest.”

 

She smirks as she lifts her ringed fist in the air.

 

“Plagg, claws out!”


	2. Chat Noire's Dream

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The beginning was different for everyone...
> 
> ... For her, it was the day her _dreams_ came true only to clash with the _reality_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Content warning: blood, near death experience, but nothing too explicit as the POV was delirious from pain.

“Finally! You’re doing something right!”

I resisted the urge to roll my eyes at the bossy photographer and ruin the shot. Today, I’m lucky enough to be one of the main models for Aphrodite’s anniversary line, and the company has reserved Lucia Park just to shoot for my part of the line… Though I don’t feel particularly lucky at the moment.

We’ve been at it all morning and my muscles are aching all over. Summer has just barely ended yet I’m already covered in coats that would’ve been great for the autumn season. Outdoor shots are a pain on a normal day, but with the sudden heatwave and the humidity it caused… To make a long list of complaints short, let’s just say this morning has been torture.

It didn’t help that this photographer is a talentless hack and we had to keep redoing shoots. The only reason he’s in charge of this shoot is because of his family’s connections. Just a few more shots and this will all be over. I’ll be relieved of this jerk and I’ll be on my merry way… Then there was a loud crash and the photographer stopped taking pictures of me.

“What now?!” the photographer whined, looking ready to whack someone with his camera. Before I could react, he fixed me with a glare and told me not to move. Ugh, what’s the point if he’s not gonna take a picture?!

From what I can hear from the gossiping camera crew, somebody tripped over the rack that held the outfits I was going to wear for the rest of the shoot. Disappointingly, I’m not even through half of them and now they’re all ruined.

“What the- do you have any idea what you just tripped on?! Your entire life savings wouldn’t be able to cover that!” the photographer yelled, waving his arms around in a tantrum.

I dropped my pose and walked over –as steadily as I can with these ridiculous heels on- to get a better look at the commotion. There, on the ground with all the ruined coats and dresses, was an old lady in a dark green kimono.

The old lady bowed her head and murmured her apologies. Her purse and its contents were scattered on the ground. Nobody dared to get in between her and the angry photographer to help. I scoffed at these cowards and tried to help the old lady when the already-raging photographer turned his angry glare at me.

“And you!” he said, pointing at me in an overly dramatic fashion. “What are you doing?! Now we have to find that perfect pose all over again!”

“Sir, we’ve been working since six. How about we take a break so you can relax and I can stretch my legs and help the old lady out of here?” I tried to be as professional as possible as I tried to negotiate with this idiot.

“No, no, NOoooOO!” he said in that annoying, nasally voice that may as well be coming from a whining toddler. “You! Stay right where you are. We don’t have time for this- We have a deadline to meet! This is the shoot of the year!”

He began his rant. I’m starting to think that this isn’t worth missing school for. He doesn’t like me as a person but he loves my budding fame as a model.

“Your manager was lucky she had just the right strings to pull to get you here, so I’m stuck with you. This shoot is going to define the rest of my career, and I’m not about to let a dirty old hag screw this up for me!”

He has a point though. Mr.s. Liung had really outdone herself with this shoot. It’s the only reason why I didn’t just ditch the jerk in the first half hour. This one shoot could have me all set for college…

“As for you…” he said as he approached the old lady, who still hasn’t stood up from the ground. I noticed a cane a little far away from her. The photographer tapped a finger to his chin, a calculating sneer appearing on his face. “How are you going to pay for the damages? You even trespassed to do so… I ought to press charges.”

I rolled my eyes. This is getting out of hand.

“How about I pay for the damages, and you let this poor old lady off the hook? How does that sound?”

He glared at me for not following his orders. This is just an accident, and he’s coercing a disabled old lady! How despicable. My hard-earned cash is important to me but this old lady doesn’t deserve to be treated this way.

“Urgh… Fine!” swung his arms above his head in exaggerated defeat. “I’ll take your paycheck. That should be enough to pay for all the damages.”

All the damages, _and then some_. This is a major shoot after all, so I’m pretty sure it could cover a lot more than just a couple of outfits, even if they’re the latest top of the line from _Aphrodite_. What a scumbag.

“And since all of the outfits are ruined, I’ll have to ask for an extension. We’ll meet again within a week. If I weren’t in such a good mood, I would’ve fired you all for letting this happen. For now, you’re all dismissed,” the pathetic excuse for a photographer said, waving his hand in a shooing motion.

The way he says it, it’s like he’s doing us all a favor. He made his exit. I grit my teeth and took deep breathes. The things I put up with for this job.

The some of the crew lingered to give me and the old lady pitying glances. I just clicked my tongue and walked past them. I don’t care for pity. It never helped anyone. I picked the old woman’s cane and kneeled down next to the old lady to offer it to her.

“Need a hand?”

“Thank you, dear,” the old lady offered me a warm smile.

I couldn’t help smiling back at her.

“Don’t mention it.”

The old lady’s smile faltered and she went back to picking her scattered belongings. There was a short pause before I kneeled down to help her collect her stuff… Among them was a weird pair of square black glasses that had a gag nose and bushy eyebrows. I shook my head and gave them back to the old lady. After gathering all her stuff, I helped her stand back up until she’s standing steadily with the help of her cane. Other than her limp- which I assume is normal for her considering her cane- she doesn’t seem to be injured.

“That must’ve been a very important photoshoot for the entire park to get closed down,” she winced as she commented. “Yet you went through all that trouble to help this clumsy old lady out.”

“Nah, it’s not that big of a deal. I’m sure I could book myself into another photoshoot later this month and earn the money back,” I reassured.

If there’s anything I’d still gain from this bust of a job, it would be fame and a sponsorship deal. Sure, I lost my entire paycheck over such a tiny accident that shouldn’t be a big deal, but I’m still modeling for _Aphrodite_ ; and on its anniversary special too. Money wouldn’t be a problem in the long run… This just means it’ll be longer before I could get enough money to pay back Mr.s. Liung for everything and live independently for a few years after high school, which wouldn’t have been a problem if that scumbag didn’t take my paycheck. I can’t wait to quit.

“Child, you’re so young. Why are you even working? Shouldn’t you be in school?”

She’s pretty nosy for an old lady. I gave her my best model smile and tried not to sound annoyed with her interrogation.

“Well, if I don’t do this then I wouldn’t even be able to afford going to school,” I answered, keeping my tone even and casual. Mr. Liung’s life insurance can only last for so long, and it’s not like he had me and my brother in mind when he planned it. Mr.s. Liung may not say it but she could really use all the help she can get.

“Shouldn’t your parents be the ones worrying about that?”

That hit a sore spot. I guess they would if they were alive. But sadly, they’re dead and there’s nothing anyone can do about it but carry on. No amount of tears can bring them back. I reigned it all in. It’s pointless to feel that way now. And this old lady didn’t know any better. I couldn’t take it out her.

“Raising three kids as a single mom isn’t easy. I wanted to help her out,” I told her instead, opting not to mention that my twin and I are currently being raised by people who aren’t even related to us when we had no one to turn to after we lost our parents. We owe them.

“Ooh, I see. Such a hardworking young lady. I wish you the best of luck in the future,” she said, waving goodbye before walking away. She’s pretty fast for a granny with a limp.

It was only a few minutes later that I realized she never looked back at me after thanking me for helping her. She must’ve felt really sorry for me. Tsk tsk. Pity is such a useless feeling, and I want no part of it.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Not having anything better to do, I made my way to school. That is, until I got a text from my brother saying a fire monster is attacking the school, he’ll be back at the apartment soon, and I should stay as far away as possible. I thought he was joking until I passed by an electronics store and all the TV screens were showing the news about what looks like an evil Human Torch.

Well, crud. A supervillain is attacking our school. And would you look at that: a superhero also appeared, just in time to shield a pink-haired girl from an incoming fireball!

I rushed back to the apartment to watch the rest of the report from a safe distance. I was just about to turn my laptop on when I noticed a strange black box on my desk. I went closer to inspect it. It had an intricate red pattern on the cover that I can vaguely identify as Chinese. I doubt the Liungs left this. Knowing them, if this was a present for me, they would’ve given it to me themselves. I rule out Blake for the same reason. I inspected the box from every other corner, but I couldn’t find any clues as to who it belongs to.

“Maybe the owner of this wouldn’t get too mad if I take a peek,” I muttered to myself as I open the box.

I saw a black ring with a neon green paw print before a ball of green light floated off of it. Once the light show cleared, I saw a black, cat-like creature floating in the middle of the room. It stretched out and yawned as if it just woke up from a long catnap. The creature reminded me of someone.

“… Are you like… Trixx?”

“I see you’ve met a kwami before. Great! That makes my job easier. By the way, I’m a rank above Trixx, and I can do way better than give you the power of illusions. I’m Plagg, by the way. Nice to meet you,” he half-introduced, half-bragged.

“I’m…” before I can introduce myself, Plagg zipped around my room. He found my laptop.

“Ooh, shiny!” he said before biting it.

“Hey! That’s new! Don’t bite that!” I scolded, jumping over to catch the flying cat. But he was too quick. By the time I got to my laptop, he was already zooming off to my shelf and licked every single one of my Avengers action figures.

“Don’t you have anything edible in here? I’m hungry!” he whined.

He was about to zip off again when he stopped and looked at my family portrait.

The one with my _real family_.

Blake and I were still so young in the portrait and our clothes were coordinated to match. In that portrait, my hair was tied up in a black bow and I was in a green, patterned dress. Blake was in a matching green, patterned shirt with a black bow tie. Dad didn’t even bother to fix himself with his crimson hair in a mess, and the top two buttons of his black button shirt were undone, but his dark eyes shone and he even had a small smile. Mom had her golden blonde hair hung loose behind her back, her white sundress was pristine, and her emerald green eyes shone. Only her mischievous smirk gives away the cunning _vixen_ she really is.

I’m sure the happy family in the picture wasn’t what caught Plagg’s attention. Rather, the silver foxtail necklace dangling around my mother’s neck did.

His trance didn’t last long and he continued to zip around my room. I eventually caught him when I pounced on him on my bed.

“You have some explaining to do,” I demanded.

“What’s there to explain? You already know the basics, being Volpina’s daughter and all.”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Transforming felt amazing. Power surged through me, the magic spread over me into a tight leather-like suit. The leather cat ears and a belt tail felt like they’re a part of me. My silky crimson hair turned into a fierce fiery red mane. The green of my emerald eyes spread to my sclera, making them look feral.

I flexed my clawed hands, then all my other limbs, testing the flexibility of my ‘indestructible’ suit. This is comfier than it looks. It all felt natural, as if this is how I always was… Yet at the same time, I feel like I can take on the world.

I smirked at my reflection in the mirror. While black cat aesthetic doesn’t look as heroic as Wonder Woman’s amazon-of-justice look, I’ve always been more of a Batman kind of girl anyway.

My smirk melted to a melancholic smile.

“It’s not exactly as I dreamed it would be, but it’s real. This is actually happening. I have my own Miraculous. Would they be proud of me if they can see me now?”

The sound of sirens broke me out of my reverie. I locked the door and jumped out the window and through the fire exit I made my way onto the roof. I can see the smoke from where the monster is attacking. I pulled out my baton and vaulted my way there.

I can see the fire monster’s keeping the red spandex guy busy.

Time to make my grand heroic entrance. It’s a good thing Ersatz Spider-Man has already demonstrated how indestructible the suits are, otherwise I wouldn’t even think of doing this.

I vaulted over the gate with a loud yell to catch everyone’s attention and smacked my staff at the monster’s face. I can hear it now, the loud cheers as another hero has arrived.

“OH NO!!! NOT ANOTHER VILLAIN!!!” bug boy yelled.

I grimaced at the accusation. Didn’t his kwami tell him that he has a partner?

I landed with all the grace of a cat and smirked at the annoying boy in red. I sauntered over to him, my body automatically performing my runway worthy strut.

“WHO ARE YOU?!” the boy started swinging his yoyo defensively.

I try to remember my mother’s words of wisdom when dealing with hostile guys. Since she was the fox and was known for deceit, she had to have some good tips in getting people to lower their guard around her, right?

_“The easiest way to make a guy drop his guard around you is to charm them. You can start by flipping your hair like those women in shampoo commercials and talk to them with a smile. That’s a sure-fire way to tame them.”_

Well, here it goes. I flipped my hair. It looked so out of place in this dangerous situation that polka dots dude stopped spinning his yoyo, which bonked him on his head from the sudden lack of momentum. I’d be laughing at him if I wasn’t trying to convince him I’m not a bad guy.

Now it’s time to introduce myself. Don’t screw this up Blair! This is your hero name, and people will be using it ‘til the day you retire so better pick something cool. What name should I use? ‘Black Cat’ doesn’t have the oomph I’m looking for and I want to keep my association to cat burglars to a minimum… Oh! I got it!

“I’m your amazing crime fighting partner, Chat Noire!” I introduced with a Cheshire cat grin to sell my heroic Catwoman aesthetic and keeping the hand I used to flip my hair up to perfectly show off my Miraculous.

Chat Noire. It has a nice ring to it. French for ‘Black Cat’ and it’s inspired by my father’s codename, Noir. My mother may have been a superhero, but my father was no slouch in that department. I want to honor him too, even if no one knows it.

My effort to charm him was rewarded with a scrutinizing glare. Ugh! This guy is gonna be a pain in the butt to work with. I can see it now.

“And you are?” I asked him while hiding the frustration in my tone.

He snapped out of his trance only for him to fluster and start muttering.

“I’m uh… What should I tell her? Maybe I should follow her example and base it on my aesthetics…”

He doesn’t seem to notice he started mumbling his thoughts out loud. Great. I got a weirdo for a teammate. His cheeks were growing redder and redder the longer he rambled. How long is he going to mumble to himself before he figures out a name? It’s not that hard! I chose mine in like, five seconds!

“What do I have to work with? I’ve got a red suit with polka dots, I’m supposed to have the power of creation and symbolize good luck, and there’s Tikki who’s like a…”

Why oh why oh why… He better pull himself together before-

“… L-Ladybug?”

“Okay Ladybug,” I said before he can change his mind, testing out the name while eyeing him from head to toe.

He’s barely half a head taller than me, not a very impressive height. He has short navy blue hair, a youthful face, and dark eyes; all fairly common features that wouldn’t look out of place on an average awkward teenaged boy. He has a noticeably lean athletic build, not too skinny, not too buff, with special emphasis on the arms; it’s likely he’s some kind of a jock when he’s not a superhero. Maybe he’s on a tennis team.

And his suit… It looks ridiculous. It’s like it’s trying so hard to compensate for his fairly handsome but not very remarkable natural features. Bright red with black spots. Just like a ladybug. As in, his name.

It fits him.

“Got a plan to handle hot stuff over there?” I asked, looking over the fire monster that ignored us in favor of continuing on his way to wherever. I can’t help but feel excited about this.

Today is the day I officially become a superhero!

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

“Cataclysm!”

I can feel the power surging at my fingertips. The power of destruction. It feels wild and intense, but it doesn’t scare me. I’m the one with complete control over this power. I can destroy things any way I want, any amount I want, with just a touch of my fingertips. 

I pushed my power into the ground, willing it to disintegrate a huge portion of the earth into the shape I wanted. And there it was. The perfect trap. It’s a huge crater, too deep to jump his way out, too smooth to climb out of.

“Y-you…” Ladybug stuttered.

“Yes?” I smirked at my flabbergasted partner, expecting a flood of compliments.

“YOU DESTROYED SCHOOL PROPERTY!!!” he yelled instead.

Way to ruin my moment of triumph.

“Oh come on! It’s not like you can’t fix it!” I retorted, waving an arm to gesture at all the carnage that happened in the fight.

Ladybug dropped that furious look and replaced it with a more thoughtful-but-still-accusing look. He gave me one last scathing glare before approaching the trapped villain.

Ugh… What a jerk!

Ladybug summoned his Lucky Charm and got a fire extinguisher. Its purpose was obvious.

“Oh great! A fire extinguisher! Just what we need!” I said with faux cheer. “We can use that to put a stop to his fire-“

Without even looking at his Lucky Charm, he threw it so hard he broke a sound barrier and it hit Scorch squarely on the head. Ooh! That’s gotta hurt.

I gave Ladybug a flat look. “What.”

Ladybug slid down the crate and approached the unconscious Scorch. With his fires put out, he looks more like a vaguely human-shaped obsidian mass.

I raised a skeptical brow at Ladybug. “What are you doing? Aren’t you supposed to purify the akuma or whatever and fix this?” I gestured at, well, everywhere to emphasize my point.

Ladybug pried out a crumpled piece of paper from Scorch’s hand and put it into his holster.

“I don’t know how. I’ll go ask Tikki,” he stiffly said, as he picked up his Lucky Charm and swung away.

I’m supposed to work with this moody overpowered noob for the rest of my life? Suddenly, my dream to be a superhero just got a lot less glamorous.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

“I’m baaaaaack!!!~” I announced as I entered the apartment.

“Blair!!!” Vincent leaped off the couch and dashed straight towards me to trap me in a hug. “We were so worried about you!!!”

“Are you okay?” Mrs. Liung asked, practically teleporting to her son’s side. Unlike her happy-touchy-feely son, she stayed at a respectable distance.

“I’m fine,” I pried myself out of Vincent’s bear hug.

“Where were you?” my twin’s voice smoothly cuts through the Liung duo’s worried chatter.

Blake was leaning by the stairs, eyeing me with his arms folded close to his chest. Looking at him now, it’s easy to see how much he takes after dad. He even inherited some of his body language. This one in particular means he’s suspicious and ready to interrogate out of worry.

“… I was at the shoot,” I said, doing my best to keep my voice as natural as possible while looking him in the eye.

Blake’s emerald stare hardened. “You hesitated.”

I consider myself to be a fairly good liar. I had to if I’m going to make it as a famous model. It’s just that normally, I have Blake as my accomplice to back me up; not the one I’m selling my lies to…

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

_“By the way, don’t tell anyone about this,” Plagg said after I detransformed a few blocks away from the Liungs’ apartment._

_“Oh don’t worry, I got the drill. My heroic exploits are not something to be shared on Instagram no matter how good I look in a leather catsuit,” I smirked as I gestured for Plagg to fly back into my purse. He did not budge._

_“I mean it, kid,” Plagg said sharply. “Not even your family should know.”_

_That made me pause._

_“… What?! But I’ve never lied to-“_

_“Especially not Blake.”_

_“But why? Mom-”_

_“Revealed herself to you by accident in one of the dumbest ways ever! And believe me, in my VERY long existence, I’ve seen a lot of really dumb reveals. Going through the bedroom window as Volpina to tuck the little twinsies in while forgetting to drop her transformation after patrol is among the dumbest reveals I’ve ever heard of.”_

_I made my best indignant-and-so-not-amused face._

_Plagg eventually straightened up and continued. “Given the choice, she probably would’ve never told you.”_

_“It worked out fine,” I said defensively. “We at least knew where she was all the time and stopped begging dad to find her whenever she’s out too long. I could do the same for Blake… He can definitely help cover for me like dad did for mom.”_

_Plagg shook his head. “This isn’t like when your mother was a hero. She fought a creepy cult everyone knew to run away from. What exactly are YOU dealing with?”_

_My gaze hardened in focus. All the clues were laid out in front of me. The possessed item, the transformation, the purifying… Then it all fell into place._

_“A_ butterfly _who can hack into anyone’s head and turn them into supervillains,” I grumbled, remembering which former Miraculous Wielder had the power to create a ‘Scorch’._

_“Exactly. Your enemy isn’t someone Blake can simply fight or get away from. Blake won’t get the choice to keep your secret should the butterfly ever come knocking into his brain. Trustworthiness isn’t a factor here. Anyone knowing your identity is a security risk, so it’s best to keep it to yourself.”_

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

… I never had to lie to Blake, nor do I want to. But I have to.

“Okay, you got me,” I said, raising my hands to either side of my head in a sign of surrender. “There’s been a minor accident this morning.”

“What?!” Vincent worriedly squeaked, eyes immediately scanning me for any visible injuries.

“Don’t worry, no one was hurt,” I glanced reassuringly at Vincent before returning my gaze to my brother. “There was this old lady who tripped on my outfits for the shoot. The stupid photographer was making a huge fuss about it and tried to sue the old lady, so I stepped in and paid for all the damages with my paycheck and…” I trailed of purposefully, letting my brother figure out the rest.

“Okay, I get it,” Blake’s face relaxed and patted me on the shoulder sympathetically. “If some scumbag cheated me out of my money, I’d be in a bad mood too and sulk somewhere alone for a while.”

I blankly nodded. I thought it would’ve been easier to just let my brother jump to conclusions and make up my excuses for me… Still, will lying to him ever get easier?

“It’s alright little sis,” Vincent put his hand on my other shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. I swallowed the urge to tell him not to call me ‘little sis’.

“Yeah, I’ll get you a better shoot next time,” Mrs. Liung promised while typing something on her phone. “You’ll never have to work with that scum again.”

I smiled gratefully at Mrs. Liung. I know I can count on her to make that happen. The Dragon Lady always finds ways. “Thanks.”

“Okay, now that that’s settled, is anybody hungry?” Mrs. Liung went to the kitchen with Vincent trailing behind suggesting whatever he's craving for at the moment, leaving us twins by the entry.

Blake looked back at me, barely containing an excited grin.

“Have you seen the new heroes? They’re so cool,” he said, making a valiant effort to keep his voice down.

I matched his grin, drawing from the thrill of being Chat Noire to make it as genuine as it could be.

“Yeah, they’re awesome. Especially the redhead in black.”

Even though it’s hard to lie to his face, I have to. It’s for our safety.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

After a nice long chat with the uncooperative kwami, it’s clear that Scorch wouldn’t be the last supervillain that’ll make an appearance. The Butterfly Miraculous has fallen into the wrong hands and whoever has it is still on the loose. No matter how I look at it, dead or alive, things didn’t end well for Monarch.

Unfortunately, my only ally in this fight is Ladybug. I don’t want to have to rely on Ladybug. He’s obviously not cut out for this hero gig. Just earlier, he ditched me to ask his kwami on how to do his job right! This guy is a nuisance! He’ll just get in my way!

 

_“We’ll always have each other’s backs. Right, sis?” seven-year-old Blake energetically held out his fist to me. It may have been a game of make-believe heroes, but that didn’t make the words any less real._

_I gave him a smile in return and bumped my own fist to his._

_“Always."_

 

And most of all, he’s not the partner I was hoping for.

“Plagg, why can’t I handle akuma purification duty?”

“Because your job is to destroy, while Ladybug’s job is to fix things. Those akumas aren’t your problem,” he said while munching on his disgusting power source that is too nasty to be called ‘cheese’.

“Can’t I – oh, I don’t know, destroy them with Cataclysm? No butterflies, no supervillains, right?”

“NO!” Plagg shrieked, almost dropping his precious crud over my precious bed.

“Why not?” I asked indignantly.

“Because you’ll hurt Nooroo,” Plagg stated with the most serious face I’ve ever seen from him.

“Nooroo?”

“The kwami of the Butterfly Miraculous. You’ll have plenty of time to get to know them once we nab the jerk who’s making them do this,” Plagg said, with so much fire in his bright green eyes that I thought I was hallucinating. This is the most energetic I’ve seen him in the few hours I’ve known him.

“Wow Plagg, I didn’t know there’s room in your heart for something other than your disgusting camembert.”

“First of all, camembert is the BEST! Second, Nooroo’s like a younger sibling to me so of course I don’t want them to get hurt. It’s the same with the other kwami. We all look out for each other. Just don’t tell Tikki I said any of this. They will never let me live it down.”

“You mention Tikki a lot,” I flatly stated.

“No, I don’t.”

“Yes, you do,” I urged and fixed him with that same stern look my father uses when he suspects that Blake and I are lying about keeping our little hands off the cookie jar before dinner. “Isn’t ‘Tikki’ the name of Ladybug’s kwami? What’s your relationship?”

“Urgh. To me, Tikki is more than just another younger sibling. They’re my partner, the yin to my yang and all that jazz. Kinda like you and your twin- or more symbolically, you and _Ladybug_ ,” he teased, knowing it will annoy me.

“Interesting,” I rolled my eyes. I am having enough trouble accepting Ladybug as my partner as is. As usual, Plagg ignored my annoyance at the comparison.

“The point is, Tikki and their chosen are the only ones who can purify an akuma without harming Nooroo. The butterflies are a part of them, an extension of their power. So don’t ever use Cataclysm on an akuma, got it?”

So that’s what’s going on. It’s a dual hostage situation, and the primary aggressor is a hostage controlled by the other hostage. Great. That means we can’t hurt them beyond a few hard nonlethal blows. I can’t Cataclysm them away. While Ladybug can harmlessly free those butterflies from evil and magically fix everything.

“I can practically hear the gears of your mind ticking from here. Something bothering you?”

“Why am I even given this,” I raised my right hand to show Plagg the Black Cat Miraculous for emphasis, “when Ladybug is the only one who’s really needed?”

“Because Ladybug can’t do this alone. You’ve seen him in action. You’re partners, and you’re stuck with him.”

“Then why can’t I just be Ladybug?”

That just slipped before I can stop it.

Don’t get me wrong, the suit and the powers that come with being Chat Noire are awesome! Definitely fits my style.

Dad taught me self-defense – both unarmed and with a baton, while mom taught me how to wield a quarterstaff because it’s similar to her weapon as Volpina. The extendable baton was practically custom made for me! Cataclysm is powerful and versatile. I can destroy anything any way I want, no matter the mass or material. The enhanced sensory and the always-lands-on-your-feet thing are very useful and came to me so naturally. Even out of costume, my senses and reflexes are better than normal. And the bright red suit with polka dots just wouldn’t work with my skin tone and hair the way black leather does. Black goes with everything and never goes out of style. The leather catsuit is a timeless classic.

In conclusion: being Chat Noire is great!

 

_“You do most of the fighting, while he’ll be in charge of fixing stuff.”_

 

It’s just that when Plagg said that, I thought I’d be the main hero taking down bad guys while Ladybug is my sidekick doing damage control in the sidelines. This is not the typical fighter-and-healer dynamic I was expecting. Contrary to my initial expectations, Chat Noire is more of a sidekick buying Ladybug time to do his thing.

In this situation, Ladybug would be the more important hero: the real hero.

With Miraculous Ladybug, he can bring everything back to normal so the authorities couldn’t press charges on us for whatever damage that happened during battle and prevent casualties. His Lucky Charm gives him the ability to summon lethal joke items that guarantee his victory. And most importantly, he’s the only one who can purify the akuma. He’s the one who brings the akumatized victim back to normal.

He’s the one who saves the day.

And in the long run, he could’ve gotten anyone else to be his main fighter and it wouldn’t matter. As long as the healer is there, everything will be alright.

This sucks! I lived my whole life looking up to my parents, dreaming to become a hero like them. I was planning on becoming a detective, the closest I’d get to being a superhero… The closest I’ll get to understand why they had to leave… Then one day, I get a Miraculous, a partner, and a supervillain to take down. To be given all this and then realize I’m more of a sidekick who has to help out such a clumsy hero is a huge blow to me.

“Because you make a better Chat Noire,” Plagg said, snapping me back to reality. “ _You_ are the one who can best use _my_ powers, not _him_. Can you imagine Ladybug using Cataclysm? My ears will never recover. It is not worth the initial amusement.”

Okay, I’ll give Plagg that one. I can’t imagine Ladybug- the guy who scolded me for destroying school property for a good cause- use _Cataclysm_. He’d just be an even bigger pain in the butt who won’t even use his powers.

“You are simply the best person for this job and you are trusted to use my powers responsibly. It’s got nothing to do with your mother, but _you_. Of all the people in this city, the guardian saw potential in _you_ \- Believed people needed _you_. That is why you’re chosen to wield my Miraculous. Take it or leave it.”

I smirked. I get his real question.

Do you still want to be a hero?

Even if I’m the sidekick, I’m still a hero… Right?

“Fine, I’ll take it.”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

From the corner of my eye, I saw dots of white floating at the distant evening horizon from my window. Autumn just barely started, those dots couldn’t be snow. Before long, more of those white dots appeared all around the city, floating up in the air like a reverse snowfall. Everyone else has noticed and stopped what they were doing to look at the mysterious glowing white dots. As more of them spread around the city, I transformed, climbed up my fire exit, and got a closer look at the white dots.

Or rather, white butterflies.

Butterflies were eerily fluttering everywhere, standing out in stark contrast to the darkness of the night. I warily stepped away from one that was fluttering by right next to me and watched it fly away to the rest of them. As similar as they look to Ladybug’s swarm of magical ladybugs that fix everything, there’s nothing about those butterflies that feel warm or comforting. Watching them flutter in swarms around the city sent chills down my spine.

Weren’t these butterflies the ones that possess items and create villains? The ones from the stolen Butterfly Miraculous?

This would be the most breathtakingly beautiful city-wide threat I’ve ever seen. Good thing they don’t seem to be interested in making monsters out of more people. That would be a nightmare.

The butterflies were fluttering in one direction – the cathedral.

**_“Citizens of Helios!”_ **

I heard a deep, chilly, feminine voice announce. The voice sounded like it was coming from everywhere. Perhaps those butterflies can work like a magical speaker system and channel her voice wherever she wants? That would explain how the Butterfly Miraculous holder could send her commands to her champions.

**_“Listen to me carefully. I am Hawkmoth!”_ **

I narrowed my eyes at the lone figure standing at the top of the cathedral. This woman… She’s definitely not Monarch. What happened to him- No. This is not the time to think about him. Focus on the objective! I’ve got a villain to take down.

From where I’m standing, I could barely see the figure spreading out her arms as if to present herself on a grand stage with the whole city as her audience.

**_“Ladybug! Chat Noire! You have things that I want. Things that should belong to me.”_ **

I’ve had enough hearing her demands. The cathedral wasn’t very far from the apartment, so I quickly made my way there. As I got closer to the cathedral, I noticed a huge crowd was forming at the entrance and the policemen were struggling to keep everyone at a safe distance.

**_“Until you return them, I’m afraid monsters will keep coming to retrieve them from you.”_ **

This is my dream! Even if I have to live through it as some klutz’s sidekick, there is no flipping way I’m going to give up my powers that easily! She can keep making as many monsters as she wants! I don’t care! I’ll fight them all!

All around me, I heard whispers of people considering her deal… Wishing Ladybug and I would just do as she says and give up our Miraculous to save their butts. The anger bubbling within me sped up my pace towards the cathedral.

**_“Don’t be selfish! The people have suffered enough because of you!”_ **

Now she’s shifting the blame on us?! I grit my teeth as I willed myself to ignore all the doubtful looks and glares people threw my way as I rushed by. I’m a hero, dammit! Haven’t I already made that clear when Ladybug and I defeated Scorch?! Is everyone so stupid to be this easily swayed by a crazy old lady preaching on top of the cathedral?! Sometimes, I wonder what the hell did my parents see in these people that was worth sacrificing their lives for.

When I finally got to the cathedral, no one was paying attention to me. It was a strange feeling to be invisible in a crowd. All eyes were glued on the madwoman with the Butterfly Miraculous as she continues her speech.

Hawkmoth. The old hag looks just like what I’d expect from a villain who’d make others do her dirty work. The sharp purple business suit with a long slit skirt, black leather gloves, and the dark flowing cape give her that ‘evil sales agent from hell’ vibe. She has silver hair streaked purple that’s tied to a bun, and a butterfly shaped mask that covers half of her face. The jeweled cane and the butterfly brooch on a choker completed her look.

**_“Give me the Miraculous, the Ladybug Earrings and the Black Cat Ring, and I promise everything will go back to normal!”_ **

I couldn’t hold back the laughter that bubbled up from my throat. Normal? That’s the last thing I’d want now that I have the chance of a lifetime to follow my mother’s footsteps! I’ve had enough of this villain monologue!

My laughter quieted down as I sardonically clapped my hands at Hawkmoth’s stupid speech.

The crowd around the cathedral finally noticed me. Without having to say a word, they parted to make a path for me to stride towards my official arch nemesis.

“Enough with the mind games Hawkmoth!” I said with an arrogant smirk that serves to hide my growing anger. I am very pleased to see that even the cops stepped out of my way. I’ve never felt so powerful. I glared up at Hawkmoth. “We’re the ones who not only fought Scorch and kept these citizens safe, but fixed everything that got destroyed during the attack! And best of all, we’re not asking for anything in return! What about you?”

Hawkmoth’s scowl was quickly replaced by a calculating smile. I find it annoying that my speech didn’t look like it affected her much, but I can’t afford to back down now.

“You just come out of nowhere promising to stop the monsters from cropping up in exchange for magical jewelry,” I turn back to eye the audience behind me, the next people I’m planning to tell off. “I don’t know about you, but that sounds awfully suspicious. I mean, handing over more power to someone who seems to have control over monsters? That’s a sucker’s deal if I ever saw one.”

Seeing the crowd quiet down and step back with their heads down in shame gave me a sense of satisfaction.

“That was a nice try Hawkmoth, but our actions speak for themselves louder than anything you can say. Don’t reverse the roles! You’re the one responsible for this mess!”

I felt a slight breeze from behind me. I glanced to my right just in time to see who jumped right by my side.

Ladybug.

There’s something different about him, so unlike the annoying fidgety bug I met this morning. At any rate, he seems more composed and ready to battle. While I still don’t like the bug, I’m not stupid enough to believe I can handle this all on my own. If Hawkmoth summons another akuma, somebody has to take care of it and the collateral damage.

I flashed him a quick smile before I returned to chewing out Hawkmoth. I pointed my baton accusingly at Hawkmoth.

“If anyone’s a villain around here that would be you!”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Hawkmoth finally appeared. This is my chance to shine! Ladybug may be the more important one when it came to fighting akumas, but I’m still the better fighter. I don’t have to hold back against Hawkmoth. I don’t have to heal her. I can take her down with no repercussions! For once, I could be the main hero!

I did the most epic verbal beat down recorded on national television. Ladybug has finally pulled himself together and is acting like a competent hero. He’s overpowering Hawkmoth and yet his barrage has to end at some point. With the way he’s attacking, he’s going to tire out quicker than he should. Hawkmoth would surely take the opening to strike, but I won’t let her.

At the right time, I threw my baton at Hawkmoth to give Ladybug some breathing space. I caught my baton with a smirk. “Hey! Leave some of the action for me!”

“Cat! Stop joking around and keep her busy!” he growled, frustrated with his quick skirmish with Hawkmoth.

“Well somebody’s got their panties in a knot,” I muttered under my breath but did as he said anyway.

We were fighting to the death on a cathedral. The fight was fast-paced; any misstep can cost us dearly. At some point, our fight moved from the steep slope of the rooftop outside, to balancing on beams, banisters, and chandeliers in the inside. We’re slowly but surely gaining the upper hand. Victory is practically guaranteed once Ladybug summoned Lucky Charm. This was supposed to end right here. Everything was going great for once!

But Ladybug just had to screw this up.

Right in the middle of the fight, he staggered. Hawkmoth smirked and unsheathed her cane to reveal a sword, shining silver under the moonlight. She was coming down on him just as he stopped himself from falling off the beam.

I can’t let that happen! He’s the only one who can fix everything! He can’t go down like this!

Without a second thought, I took the blow for him. I guess ‘indestructible’ doesn’t cover weapons that come with the Miraculous. Pain exploded from where I was hit and swept over my entire body. I nearly lost consciousness. I suddenly felt all the adrenaline in my body drain away. The world feels like it’s spinning erratically. I didn’t even notice when I started falling. I felt a pair of strong arms catch me.

Ladybug.

Ladybug had already used Lucky Charm. This couldn’t be simpler. We’ve practically won.

**_“You might wanna use that Lucky Charm to save her, boy.”_ **

I felt Ladybug stiffen, his heartbeat erratic as he held me closer.

Dammit, Ladybug! This could be our only chance! Don’t squander it!

My body refused to move. I have to do something to show Ladybug that I can hold out. That I can wait for a Miraculous Ladybug. With all that’s left of my strength, I urged myself to open my eyes and turn my head to Ladybug.

Our eyes met.

What I saw disappointed me. There he was, crouched over as he held me, shaking like a leaf in a storm. Cold sweat was dripping from his forehead. His brown eyes were wide and full of fear.

I scowled.

He looked away from me and back to Hawkmoth. His hand that was holding the Lucky Charm shook. He was seriously considering letting Hawkmoth get away.

The air felt thin, my chest felt tight, but I urged myself to say something.

“Don’t let her get away.”

If one of us had to go down, it should be me. I did my part, and now it’s his turn! Don’t let her win! Don’t let her go free to keep terrorizing the city we live in! Don’t make us fail as heroes because of me!

Hawkmoth was getting away.

Ladybug was shaking as he gripped the jar. I didn’t need to look to know what he chose.

“Miraculous Ladybug!”

The miraculous cure spread all over the church, fixing all the damages as if they never happened. Then it went to work on me. I felt surrounded in warmth as the pain washed away. I was as good as new.

While the pain disappeared, my frustration with Ladybug didn’t.

As soon as I was feeling better, I pushed him off of me. I ran towards the open window and desperately looked around, hoping to find Hawkmoth. It was to no avail. All I saw was an empty night sky, and an equally empty courtyard down below. Even with my night vision, there’s not a trace of movement.

Hawkmoth got away.

A growl rumbled in my throat. I glared back at Ladybug.

He cost me a lot today. Pride, glory, victory… _My dream to be a hero_. All of it gone because fate chose this guy to be the hero, and me to be the sidekick. I had a lot to say about Ladybug. Most of them are really awful things.

Hawkmoth should’ve been defeated by now. We could’ve succeeded. I would’ve been a hero. But that dream went down the drain because he decided I’m a damsel in distress. He could’ve taken down Hawkmoth right then and there! I could’ve waited for a Miraculous Ladybug! I had a long speech formed in my head, but none of that came out.

As I jumped down from the window and got a closer look, I heard before I saw. He was crying.

“I’m so sorry… I let h-her get away…” he whimpered in between his tears. “She hurt my friends… And I… I-I let my anger get the better of me… I wasn’t looking where I was standing… I was so fixated on taking her d-down… Then y-you… I’m sorry!”

It’s not every day I see a guy break down like this… Last time I did was the day my brother and I became orphans.

“I-I don’t deserve to be a hero,” he shakily added.

“Stop that thought right there,” I firmly commanded. I can’t stand seeing him like this! I have to do something.

I placed both of my hands on his shoulders, careful with keeping my grip tight without hurting him with my claws, and forced him to look at me. I held a steady gaze on his tearful brown eyes, hoping that it would help him believe in what I have to say and make it feel more real.

“Throughout the whole ordeal, you’ve been nothing but a total goody two shoes! You did everything you can to contain the damages and took hits for civilians before I got to Scorch at the school. If I’m not mistaken, you just got your powers today. Am I right?”

Ladybug weakly nodded.

“Yet you just jumped into danger without a second thought. We’ve only known each other for not even a day, but I know you are the sort who will place everyone else’s wellbeing over your own. Heck, you just saved my _life_.”

Keep it together, Chat Noire. You’re still alive. Don’t let your brush with death bother you now.

“You’re a true hero, Ladybug!”

I wasn’t quite sure what was I thinking when I said all of that to him. No matter how conflicted I’m feeling right now, I still managed to say it with enough conviction to convince him. I just wanted him to stop his pity party. Before I knew it, I went overboard and said all this stuff just to get him out of his slump… And I realized that maybe I shouldn’t have been too critical of him. He fumbled a lot but it’s not like he was completely incompetent. It’s likely he knew nothing about the Miraculous before becoming a superhero so naturally, he’d struggle at adapting more than I did. He may have let Hawkmoth get away, but I would’ve been dead if he hadn’t…

Ladybug smiled gratefully at me.

“Thank you, Chat Noire.”

_I should be the one thanking you._

I didn’t say that out loud. The last scraps of my pride wouldn’t let me. Instead, I brushed it off, as if a near-death experience wasn’t a big deal and continued to act like nothing bothers me. I still think he could’ve caught Hawkmoth without letting me die. He had luck on his side.

Everything after that was a blur. I left the first chance I got and hurried back to the apartment.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

“… Why did I even do that for that weirdo?” I asked myself as soon as I was in my room.

“Same reason why the guardian chose you.”

Plagg’s eyes were glowing like a pair of emerald flames in the dark. Contrary to my expectations, he didn’t charge towards his precious camembert as soon as I de-transformed. His tiny arms were folded.

“The guardian would always choose a self-sacrificing fool with a strong sense of justice for my Miraculous. It always comes down to that.”

“What?” I scoffed at Plagg’s stupid assumption. “You think I’m a self-sacrificing fool?”

“I don’t _think_ you’re one. I _know_ you’re one. Exhibit A: Taking a fatal blow for Ladybug. And on your first day too! Keep this up and you might just break a certain Chat Noir’s record! You just made your predecessors proud kid,” Plagg sarcastically sneered. It’s like he’s passive-aggressively upset about this worrying trend among his charges.

“In my defense, I thought you said my suit was indestructible.”

“And Ladybug is wearing an indestructible just like yours yet you still took a hit for him instead of letting his suit do its job.”

“Which it didn’t,” I pointed out, more harshly than I intended. Plagg doesn’t seem affected so I asked, “What’s up with that?”

“It’s not like I expected Hawkmoth to know about that blade.”

“Elaborate, Plagg.”

Plagg rolled his eyes. Obviously, he’d rather not. The only reason he’s complying at all is because in his own gruff way, he cares about the survival of his charges and my survival kinda depends on this.

“As you know, the Miraculous comes with default weapons. With enough training and experience, wielders can shape their powers into alternate forms to better suit their needs in place of their one special move. This is why there’re legends of mystical swords and armor instead of magical yoyos and extendable batons.”

My eyes widen in realization. “So that’s why Hawkmoth didn’t make a champion… She couldn’t once she started using that sword!”

“Yeah. The one she used earlier was a sword made specifically to kill Miraculous Wielders,” Plagg ignored the questioning look I shot him. “So no more jumping in front of Hawkmoth’s sword, got that?”

“Chill, Plagg. It’s not like I was gonna die. Miraculous Ladybug fixes everything,” as I said this, I lifted my blouse so I can look at where I was stabbed a few minutes ago. There’s no trace of pain. Not even a scar. Good as new. “All he had to do was capture Hawkmoth and everything would’ve been alright afterwards. It was a pragmatic decision with no real risks.”

“Stupid girl, you could’ve died! Miraculous Ladybug fixes a lot of things, but it can’t bring back the dead!”

Hearing that sent a chill up my spine. For a split second, it felt like I was back on the cathedral’s roof, feeling the rest of my body going numb with cold save for that one point in my stomach where all the warmth was rushing out.

“I… I almost…”

“If you knew that, would you still jump in front of that sword for Ladybug?”

I don’t have an answer for that. I never thought of it that way. I hate to say it but Ladybug’s power is more important than Chat Noire’s. He’s the only one who can fix everything. Logically, I should do everything I can to protect Ladybug from Hawkmoth… But would I really give my life to accomplish that? To Plagg, my silence was a good enough answer. He shook his head in disappointment.

“That’s what I thought. You’re lucky Ladybug wasn’t in the mood to take a gamble.”

I felt for that spot where I was stabbed. I could’ve died if it wasn’t for Ladybug. I could’ve been gone for good like my parents. Luck really was on my side after all.

“And to think I would’ve yelled at him for it if he hadn’t been crying. I feel like an ingrate.”

“Psh. Not like you actually yelled at him. You even gave him a motivational speech.”

My hands ran through my hair, freeing it from its foxtail.

“I-I could’ve…”

… Just like my parents… Those self-sacrificing fools…

“You’ve got a lot on your mind kid. Try not to stay up too late,” Plagg said before zooming off to his camembert.

I numbly nodded. My body went on autopilot as I did my nightly beauty regimen, changed to a pair of shorts and a tank top, and threw myself onto my bed. I know I won’t be getting much sleep tonight.

Today was quite a rollercoaster of events. I reached over to my stomach where I was stabbed. Less than an hour ago, I nearly died. The memory was crystal clear though I don’t have the scar to prove it.

All thanks to Ladybug.

That guy is a pain in the butt from the moment I met him. He’s easily carried away by his feelings and doesn’t know what he’s doing. He gets the more important role, which I felt is wasted on an unreliable guy like him.

At least, that’s what I felt before I did that pep talk and had some epiphanies.

Ladybug was a mess of emotions. He went from bumbling like an awkward teenage boy talking to a girl for the first time, to a stoic grouch after defeating Scorch in the span of fifteen minutes. And then Hawkmoth came along and brought out yet another mood out of the already moody bug. He went totally berserk when he fought viciously against Hawkmoth. Apparently, his friends were caught in Scorch’s attack so this was personal to him. He had the perfect motivation to want to take down Hawkmoth at all costs. It’s also no secret that he doesn’t like me.

And yet he chose to save me.

That was quite the wake-up call.

Before today, I thought I had a clear idea of the kind of hero I wanted to be. Someone who fights for justice, defends the weak… All without sacrificing themselves. What’s the point of saving the day if you don’t get to live to enjoy it?

I didn’t want to be a hero for these nameless masses of people who would probably forget to thank me after I saved their butts within a week. I wanted to be a hero for the few who matter, the few who happens to live in the same city as these ingrates. This is why I would strive to save the day: to keep it safe for my loved ones first and foremost and just let others benefit from it. But when it comes down to it, I’d know who to choose between my family and these strangers.

That’s the kind of hero I wanted to be. I’d put the people who should matter first and never abandon them for the sake of people I’ve never even met. Saving everyone else is just a bonus. I won’t make the same mistake my parents made. I’ll be a better hero than they were.

Now, I’m having second thoughts.

I stared up at my family portrait on the wall.

By the end of the day, it felt like Ladybug was closer to being a true hero than I ever was.

I lay in bed with only one thought in mind as I drifted off to sleep:

 

_What does it really mean to be a hero?_

 

0-0-0-0-0


	3. Blair's Reality

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I said I wanted to get this out by March, buuuuut better late than never, right?  
> This is part two of Origins from Blair/Chat Noire's POV
> 
> hope you guys enjoy!

I woke up to the sound of my phone beeping viciously with notifications. I could’ve easily ignored it and slept through it, but my adorable kwami couldn’t and decided if he couldn’t sleep, neither should I.

“Blaaaaaaaaiiir… shut it off…” Plagg whined, nudging me in the face with his tiny feet.

I groggily picked it up to check what could people be going on about this early in the morning. It occurred to me that today’s a school day so it’s not like I could sleep in. I quickly scrolled around as I wait for my eyes to adjust to the light.

Hm…

Oh. This is interesting.

“You’ve had a busy night, huh Ladybug?”

“What did he do noooooow?” Plagg whined, like the cranky kitty he is.

Posted everywhere on the internet was Ladybug’s announcement:

 

_'ATTENTION CITIZENS OF HELIOS_

_I, LADYBUG, WILL MAKE AN ANNOUNCEMENT AT THE CITY FOUNDER’S STATUE TODAY AT 5:00PM. I INVITE YOU ALL TO BE THERE. ESPECIALLY THOSE WHO WERE THERE DURING THE SCORCH INCIDENT. IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, I WILL ANSWER THEM. I BELIEVE YOU, THE CITIZENS OF HELIOS, DESERVE TO KNOW WHAT’S HAPPENING IN YOUR CITY AND TO BETTER PREPARE YOU FOR WHAT’S TO COME. BUT DO NOT WORRY. WE HEROES WILL BE AROUND TO PROTECT YOU._

_LADYBUG'_

 

Even in text, Ladybug is a loud one. And he posted this everywhere on the internet.

“At least learn to use proper caps, you dork.”

It was blissful for five minutes until I remembered school will start in thirty minutes. I jumped out of bed and started preparing for the day.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

“Whyyy do we have to go to schoooool?” Plagg whined from my bed as I scurried around my room picking up things I’m going to need.

“Because I don’t want to waste the sponsorship I fought tooth and nail for,” I flatly said, not in the mood to deal with his whining. “Besides, I already lost a major paycheck to help that old lady yesterday.”

When I reached my vanity, I stopped. My hair ribbon is there, right where I left it last night. I picked it up and looked at myself in the mirror. Should I tie it back to its usual foxtail?

Well, technically, I don’t know what this hairstyle is called. I just call it a foxtail because that’s my mother’s hairstyle whenever she transforms into Volpina. I’ve been styling my hair that way since childhood. At first, it was because I wanted to become a hero just like her. Now, I just do it to remember her by…

I looked back down to my hands, one already holding the hair ribbon, the other wearing the Black Cat Miraculous. It’s nothing like my mother’s fox tail necklace, the Miraculous of Illusion. This is my reality. I’m the Black Cat of Destruction, Chat Noire… All that power, but I can’t save anyone. Can I even call myself a hero?

“Ugh… Where’s the camembert?”

And as expected, my helpful kwami’s stomach is more important than my dilemma.

“Didn’t you finish it all yesterday?”

“Yeah. With all the transforming we did yesterday, I needed all of it to recover my energy! Next time, buy it in bulks.”

I raised a brow at his proposition. “Can I even trust you to ration it properly?”

“Depends. How much do I have to exert my energy so you can kick butt as Chat Noire?”

With a groan, I gave in to the kwami’s whims. Hero or not, I don’t wanna give up my Miraculous just yet. “… Fine! I’ll buy your stupid cheese!”

I gripped the ribbon and decided to tie my hair into a foxtail. It’ll be best to pretend everything is alright in Blair Town and not give Blake any reasons to ask if I’m alright. Lying to him is the last thing I wanna do right now. I picked up Plagg and put him in a purse.

“Now you keep quiet. My brother and I are gonna walk to school and he might hear you.”

For once, Plagg decided to behave and stayed quiet in my bag. I greeted my brother downstairs and we quietly walked our way towards school.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

When the school was within sight, I was greeted with an interesting scene.

Standing at the entrance was a brunet haired boy. He was easy to spot with his orange plaid button up. From the way he keeps looking up from his phone, it’s a safe bet that he’s waiting for someone. Strangely, most of the people around him seemed to be on edge as they pass him by.

“By the way sis,” Blake said, breaking my trance. “Since you weren’t around during first period yesterday, I should tell you that the guy you’re looking at is in our class. His name is Keagan Gerald Aurelio-Ashworth, the mayor’s son. You probably know him better as Scorch.”

It was a little strange that no one tried to arrest Scorch. It was even weirder that no one on the evening news is talking about his real identity. Hawkmoth made the headlines minutes after she revealed herself, and she’s still flooding the morning news. Scorch, on the other hand, is hardly mentioned after yesterday noon.

“That explains why no one’s talking about his identity in the news. It would look bad for the mayor to broadcast his son’s brief stint as a supervillain,” I said.

Talk about scandalous. Granted, I was so distracted with my own drama yesterday that Scorch’s identity didn’t seem like a big deal at the time.

“From what I know of him, before he- you know- went supernova… He seems like a nice guy,” Blake stated.

I stared down the brunet, scrutinizing him from head to toe. Messy brown hair, a tall somewhat lanky frame, and posture that would make even Prince Charming fume with envy.

He was standing by the entrance all alone until his friends have arrived.

He’s apologizing to the pink haired midget in a navy blue hoodie. She seems familiar, but I can’t place my finger on where I’ve seen her before. From what I can hear, the girl was mad because she couldn’t contact him yesterday. Apparently, the brunet put his phone on airplane mode to avoid hate mail.

Then his other friend, a boy with glasses and bluish black hair, came along. The midget quickly rounded on the glasses boy, only for the glasses boy to bow at them. The brunet in orange plaid couldn’t even make the nerdy glasses boy budge from bowing, while the punk midget managed to pull him up with just one hand. The brunet tried his best to reassure his bespectacled friend who stubbornly insists on apologizing.

Looking at him now, I couldn’t believe he was that same fire monster who attacked school.

Judging from the wary looks people are giving him, it’s likely that everyone else still sees him that way: As the fire monster. Even when the truth is he’s the real victim.

“What do you think?” Blake questioned. Judging by my brother’s stance, I can safely assume I’m not the only one who connected the dots between Hawkmoth and Monarch. He knows how their powers work. He knows Princey over there is innocent.

“I think I’d talk to him and see for myself,” I said as I strode ahead of my twin towards the ex-villain.

The brunet and his group of friends notice me coming their way and put a lid on their conversation. I said nothing as I looked them over. My brother eventually caught up.

The mayor’s son seems to be the most social one in their trio since he’s the first one to greet us. “Hey Blake! This is my other best bud, Shizuke Midorikawa.”

The orange plaid boy gestured towards his bespectacled friend. Standing next to a pink haired punk and a modern day prince, he sticks out as the plain one. Kinda like a DUFF. With the glasses and the sweater vest, he looks like he could be the poster boy for the nerdy Asian stereotype. Contrary to my expectations, Shizuke just looks us over neutrally, unaffected by the fact that he’s standing next to two of the most popular teen models in this side of the city.

“Cool,” Blake said keeping his usual poker face. Funny how often people think he’s being cool or snobby when in actuality, he’s just freezing up from shyness.

The blue-black haired boy eyed us critically as he adjusted his glasses and greeted him back with an equally deadpan, “Nice to meet you too.”

At my side, Blake winced from having his mild rudeness get highlighted by the nerd. But to others, I bet he just looked annoyed. Glasses boy seems to thinks so, judging from his displeased frown.

“And this is…?” the brunet prompted, snapping my introverted twin’s attention back to the conversation.

“This is my twin sister, Blair,” he introduced me, before introducing the others. “The girl with pink hair is Fiona Kuznetsov… And the guy in the orange plaid is Keagan Gerald Aurelio-Ashworth,” he stiffly added the last introduction, feeling a little awkward since we were just talking about him.

The ex-villain looked a bit uneasy sensing the awkwardness radiating off Blake.

I try to calm him down with a polite smile.

“So, you’re Scorch.”

… And then address the elephant in the room with all the tact of a brick thrown through a glass window.

People should know by now that I don’t do cruel things without a reason. I’m a pragmatist at heart. Not very heroic, I know, but I don’t have time to do this the nice way and politely ask everyone to assess just how bad the situation is. People will be completely biased and say things that will either make themselves sound braver or nicer than they really are or even blow the whole thing out of proportion out of fear. They won’t be completely honest in fear of triggering Scorch’s return.

And with just three words, I got so many conductive results.

Keagan flinched, and guilt was written all over his face.

Shizuke and Fiona instantly glared at me and took a step closer to Keagan’s sides.

As for everyone else, some jumped back at the mention of the villain’s name, others walked faster away from the brunet, and then there was a particular group of upperclassmen who outright screamed and ran for their lives.

I just broke the calm. They stopped trying to hide it. Everyone else kept their distance as much as possible. The crowd walking towards school parted around him like the red sea did for Moses.

“Yes, I _was_ ,” the plaid boy curtly confirmed with a sharp emphasis on the past-tense.

This couldn’t go on. Keagan Gerald Ashworth was a victim of Hawkmoth’s, not a monster. Somebody has to do something.

_… A hero would do something._

_Ladybug is already planning on doing something._

_While I’m not._

“You know, Ladybug’s going to make an announcement at City Square. You should totally be there if you want to know more about your situation.”

I walked away, ignoring his calls to come back and explain. His friends are there with him. They can explain things for him.

_I’m not needed anyway._

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

“You owe them an apology,” Blake scolded as soon as I entered the classroom.

Since I wasn’t around for the first day, the seats were assigned and for once, the Crawford twins are NOT seated together.

However, we’re both in the front row and the only thing separating us is the lane right in the middle. Blake is sharing a desk with a sleeping lavender haired boy. Figures he’d share a desk with the one guy in class who’s more anti-social than him.

“Eh? Why should I? I was only asking him if he really was Scorch. Can you blame me for finding it hard to believe?”

“Sis, it may not be a big deal to you, but it is to them. I think that deserves an apology.”

I pouted at Blake.

Blake didn’t drop the subject and pointed at the empty seats around me.

“They will be sitting all around you for the rest of the school year. Are you sure you’re okay with them glaring holes behind your back ‘til we graduate junior high?”

Before I can argue back, the three of them entered the classroom and sat all around me just as Blake said.

I’m stuck sharing a desk with the mayor’s son, and the boy stayed a respectable distance away from me. Notably, he was the first one to take a seat. I think it’s because he noticed how hostile his friends were towards me, so he decided to play peacemaker and sat with me. His fuming friends warily took the seats on the desk behind us, glasses boy in particular is the one directly behind me. Both of them are glaring holes at me, just as Blake predicted.

Blake sent me one last look that clearly said ‘stop being petty and just apologize’.

Ugh. They’re gonna make my school year difficult if I don’t apologize, huh?

I was about to turn to them when our teacher entered the room and started taking attendance.

I decided to do the next best thing and pass them a note for now, just to make sure they’d stick around when I apologize.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

As soon as the bell for lunch break rang, the glasses boy shot out of the classroom without a second glance at me. Rude. After all the effort I made to arrange this meeting. Most guys would be tripping over themselves just to meet me!

At least the other two are still here.

The girl with the pink pixie cut is still glaring at me with the iciest blue eyes I’ve ever seen and has seated herself on top of her desk so she can look down on me menacingly. She has to because if we were standing, she’s almost a whole head shorter than me and that would ruin the intimidating effect she was aiming for.

The brunet boy, on the other hand, is much more neutral, wearing a calm attentive expression fit for a congress meeting.

Blake, ever the supportive twin, is still in his seat watching over us.

“Okay,” I started as my hand ran through my hair. Nervous habit. “I wanted to properly apologize for being tactless this morning. I didn’t mean to be insensitive.”

“Oh, that’s okay. You weren’t there when it happened so I can’t blame you for taking the situation so lightly,” Keagan immediately replied.

My eyes widen at how quickly he accepted my apology. Poor innocent boy. He has no idea. I was at the front lines. I even smacked him in the head once.

“Still, I should apologize. It was a sensitive topic. I’m sorry,” I insisted.

“Oh, you better be,” growled Fiona.

Keagan looked up to his friend and gently nudged her leg. “C’mon, lighten up Fuyu. It’s not a big deal,” his voice was light until a frown crossed his face. “Besides, there are people who have done worse and still haven’t apologized to me. At least she approached us and said ‘sorry’.”

The girl’s glare on me is starting to waver. She looked away from me and frowned at the boy.

“Ugh. Fine. If you say so,” she relented, before training her ice cold gaze at me. “Just don’t mention that around us again. Got it?”

I solemnly nodded.

These guys are seriously traumatized and I was being a huge insensitive jerk this morning. Not a word of the ‘Scorch’ incident will ever escape my mouth around them ever again.

“Now that that’s settled, let’s start over,” Keagan started.

He offered me his hand. I looked at it curiously.

“Hi, I’m Keagan Gerald Aurelio-Ashworth. If you look to your left, you can see my house from here,” he gestured to the windows where sure enough, the Ashworth castle can be seen on the horizon.

I chuckled. I think I could get along with this guy. Maybe we could even be friends.

“The name’s Blair Crawford, but you probably already know that with my face plastered on every other billboard in the city, right next to my brother’s,” I tilted my head towards Blake, who was trying to hide his head under his arms.

The pink haired girl rolled her eyes at our antics.

“Fiona Kuznetsov. I can kick everyone’s butts if I wanted to. Remember that and you’ll be fine,” she joined in our jokes anyway. She seems like a cool person under all that grouchiness.

“So Blair, Blake, wanna have lunch with us? Maybe Shizuke would show up,” the brunet, Keagan, suggested.

I offered him a smile.

“Sounds good to me.”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Keagan and Fiona separated from us to buy lunch at the cafeteria, even though Fiona clearly brought spare ribs for lunch. She’s just there to glare at anyone who gives Keagan funny looks.

That was when Blake decided that now would be a good time to drop a bomb on me. I felt like kicking myself for not realizing it when it was standing right in front of me.

“She what?! Why didn’t you tell me sooner?!”

“I didn’t realize it until I saw her running after Keagan just now,” Blake stared off at the direction where we last saw the duo. “It makes sense that the girl Ladybug saved on his debut was Fiona. Why else would anyone chase a walking firestorm? The pink hair should’ve been a dead giveaway.”

“Don’t feel too bad,” I said, putting a hand over his shoulder reassuringly. “I saw the news. I was just too focused on Ladybug to pay attention to everyone else.”

“Good thing he came when he did, huh?”

I felt something weigh heavily on my chest. I knew Scorch - _Keagan_ \- almost killed people with his reckless fire attacks raining down on the school. Just last night, I learned that Miraculous Ladybug couldn’t bring the dead back to life. People could’ve died yesterday. _Keagan would’ve been a murderer, and his best friend would’ve been his first victim._

Ladybug immediately jumped into action without fully understanding his powers. If he didn’t do that… If he didn’t came when he did…

“Uhh… Sis? Are you okay? You look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Blake said, giving me a worried look.

“I could’ve… Fiona might not be here if it weren’t for him.”

Not just Fiona… I’d be dead too if it weren’t for him. Keagan would never be able to forgive himself... Blake would’ve been left all alone… I’d die as a shallow imitation of our parents. Guilt gnawed at me from the inside. I realize how selfish I’ve been since I got the Black Cat Miraculous, caring more about my jaded dreams than the danger everyone else is in because of Hawkmoth. One thing’s for sure…

“Ladybug is a true hero.”

“I couldn’t agree more.”

We looked up and saw Keagan standing behind us holding a lunch tray and a crooked smile, guilty as charged for listening in on our gossip session… Or maybe he looks guilty because he heard us talking about how Fiona could’ve died because of him. Fiona was right behind him glaring at us like an overprotective paladin. The irony of their true dynamic isn’t lost on me - it’s not every day you see a ‘damsel’ protect the ‘monster’ who put her in distress. It’s amazing how their relationship (whatever it is) is still standing after everything that’s happened.

The two of them sat across from us. Fiona’s in a significantly less friendly mood, glaring at anyone who looks our way longer than necessary. Keagan on the other hand didn’t seem mad at us, valiantly ignoring the people whispering around us. After what I’ve just learned, I’ve developed a newfound respect for Keagan and Fiona. In their own ways, they’re brave.

After we finished lunch, Keagan pulled out his phone and grinned at us as though someone told him Christmas is coming early this year.

“Wanna see my exclusive video on the heroes?”

Keagan didn’t take ‘no’ for an answer. As it turns out, he was there the whole time when Hawkmoth made her first public appearance. He also showed us a prototype of his new purpose in life. The blog’s purpose is to collect data on akuma, alert people of their appearance, and help authorities in figuring out how to better deal with akuma attacks and victims.

He calls it the Ladyblog. Not very subtle with his favoritism, but I can’t blame him. Even if Ladybug had every reason to be mad at him for technically being the one who put his friends in danger, Ladybug still spared some of his limited time to personally cheer him up. Earlier that day, Ladybug also saved his pseudo-girlfriend’s life.

Ladybug inspired him to do this. Just like a hero should.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

After lunch, we all went our separate ways. Keagan and Fiona wanted to look for Shizuke while Blake needed his daily alone time after socializing with those two. I was walking around school, trying to memorize the layout, when I bumped into someone. Literally.

Before I could fall face first onto the floor, a hand caught me by the waist and held me close. My face was about two inches away from what looked like Keagan wearing a wavy platinum blond wig. As he helped me regain my balance, he swept down and kissed the back of my hand. If this were an anime, there’d probably be roses blooming around him by now.

“Careful, princess. The floor is no place for a beauty such as yourself.”

With the sunlight streaming down the window behind him giving him an ethereal glow, and a flash of pearly white teeth he paid some dentist a hefty sum to polish, this guy has perfected the Prince Charming look. Probably had years of practice.

And to that, I snorted.

Prince Wannabe’s face twitched, but he retained his pleasant smile.

“I’m Leonardo Arthur Aurelio,” he winked at me. “But you can call me ‘Leo’.”

I was barely paying attention. In fact, I was looking past him and saw a familiar blue-black haired nerd trailing sheepishly after a teacher across the hall. Not-Keagan noticed and for a split second, his smile fell into a scowl, hands reaching up to fix his collar. I didn’t care. I have a nerd to follow.

“And I’m leaving, but you can call me never,” I gave him a tight fake smile and walked around him. Five steps later, the Casanova Wannabe blocked my way.

“You look familiar,” he leaned down close to my face. “Have we met?”

That’s it. Prince Weeb here just lost all his entertainment value.

“Nope,” I bopped him on the nose and gently pushed him away. “But my face is everywhere these days.”

Blondie snapped his fingers. “Oh! You’re Aphrodite’s newest model, Blair Crawford!”

“Yep. The one and only. Now if you’ll excuse me-“

“How about I walk you to your class?”

Peering over his shoulder, I could tell that Shizuke was long gone. I dropped the fake smile and leveled him with a glare. “No.”

“C’mon, princess. Don’t be shy…” he reached over to me, but I grabbed his wrist before he could touch me. He winced in pain. Geez, what a wimp. I’m not even gripping him that hard.

“What part of ‘no’ don’t you understand? The ‘n’ or the ‘o’?” I placed his hand back to his chest and took a step away from him. I’m not familiar with the school and Shizuke could be anywhere by now. I’m just gonna have to backtrack my way back to class. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have classes to attend.”

Thankfully, Leo didn’t follow me. I hastened my steps and blended into a crowd just to make extra sure.

As for Shizuke, I’ll just deal with him later. I’m sure I’ll see him again in less than half an hour, once lunch break ends. Call it stereotypical, but Shizuke doesn’t seem like the sort to skip class.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Technically, Shizuke didn’t skip class. But he’s late. And the reason behind it is something I never would’ve expected:

“I can’t believe Shizuke got sent to the guidance counselor’s office.”

“What did he do?”

“I heard he beat up the G.C.’s son.”

“No way!”

“Way!”

“I saw him pin Leo to a shelf with a chokehold! It. Was. Hot.”

“We don’t need to hear your yaoi fantasies.”

“But damn, that nerd’s in trouble… Not even being friends with the Mayor’s friggin’ son could help him out of that.”

“Well good riddance. No one’s gonna yell at me for sleeping in class anymore.”

“S-Shizuke’s a stickler for the rules! H-He wouldn’t do something that could get him exp-p-pelled…”

“I was there when it happened. Leo called Keagan a monster. And that he deserves to die.”

“Oh… No wonder he snapped.”

“Though, Leo does have a point. I don’t feel safe with Keagan around. Not even Fiona’s safe from him.”

The whole school is buzzing about him. At some point during lunch break, he kicked ass. And the poor ass he kicked belongs to Leo.

Now, I’m not surprised Shizuke could win in a fight against Leo. If I can easily push him away with little effort, I’m sure the average person can handle him just fine. What I didn’t expect was how one-sided their fight apparently was. From what I can gather, Shizuke had him down in ten seconds flat. Apparently, Shizuke is in the Judo club. What a surprise, trading one Asian stereotype for another.

Fiona is sitting behind me with a proud smile on her face, humming a happy tune. Keagan, on the other hand, was curled over his desk with worry. It’s like these two swapped places.

“Shouldn’t you be a little more worried about Shizu?!”

Fiona snorts in a completely unladylike way. “In a fight against Leo? Please. Shizu can handle that limp noodle any day of the week. I’m just proud he’s putting all those Judo lessons to good use.”

“That’s not what I meant! This doesn’t sound like something Shizu would do… This isn’t like him… What could’ve pushed him…?”

“Maybe Leo opened his mouth long enough and I wasn’t there to shut him up.”

“Fuyu! This is not the time for jokes!”

I held back a snicker. Keagan’s right, this should be a serious matter; his bestie just got sent to the guidance counselor. But with the way Fiona’s acting… No wait, now she’s frowning. Now I definitely can’t laugh.

“I’m serious. Leo’s lucky I wasn’t there,” Fiona muttered darkly, her icy blue eyes gleaming with malice. “If what he said can push even Shizu to raise a fist… I wouldn’t be as merciful as Shizu.”

Yikes. It’s a good thing I made amends with her then.

The class suddenly fell quiet. We looked out the door and saw the man of the hour has finally arrived. Shizuke entered the classroom, fists clenched tight and face set in a frown full of grim determination.

“Everyone, I’m sure you’ve heard about my trip to the guidance counselor today,” Shizuke said, marching up towards the teacher’s empty desk. “And I’m sure you’re all wondering why I got sent there.”

The class remained quiet, none dared to speak up; none except for my seatmate that is. “Is it true that you got in trouble because of me?”

“Yes. Your cousin said horrible things about you…”

“As usual, he speaks nothing but fluent cow dung,” Fiona retorted from the side.

Shizuke’s eyes narrowed and his mouth turned to a stern frown.

Fiona shrugged. “What? It’s true.”

The glasses boy groaned into his palm, but that small smile he’s trying to hide tells everyone he’s not as annoyed as he’s trying to make himself out to be. Fiona’s low snicker tells me she riled him up as an ice breaker. Shizuke took a deep breath before looking back up with a determined glare.

“I don’t have to repeat anything Leo said. I’m sure you all heard some version of it anyway. Let it be clear to you all that I will not tolerate anyone repeating what Leo said or did, ESPECIALLY around Kaji. Understood?”

There were murmurs of agreement in the class. Shizuke, having run out of things to say, shuffled up to his seat behind me.

“Look at the bright side; at least now you can say you’ve had the full school experience,” Fiona said, in a half-hearted attempt to lighten up their situation.

“You didn’t lose your scholarship over this, did you?” Keagan asked worriedly.

Crud. Now I feel like I’m intruding. But with every other seat occupied, I don’t have a choice but to listen in on them sorting out their problems.

Shizuke shook his head. “No. Just a month of helping the library and a fifty-page essay on responsible martial arts.”

“Huh. You got off easy. Weird,” Fiona said.

“And crazy lucky,” Keagan added, his mouth a firm line and arms crossed, looking strict for once. “It was Leo you got into a fight with. I doubt my cousin would let this be the end of it. I’d keep my guard up if I were you.”

Shizuke nodded, not faltering at all.

“By the way, Shizu,” Keagan said, flashing a small smile. “Thanks.”

Shizuke scrunched his brows. “For what?”

“For standing up for me. I thought that… You were…“

“This idiot thought that you were avoiding him,” Fiona helpfully supplied. She turned to Kaji with an all-knowing smile. “Ye of so little faith.”

“Fuyu! Can’t you let me come up with a less embarrassing way to phrase that?!”

“Watching you tripping over your words is embarrassing enough. Might as well do it the quick and painless way, oh faithless one.”

Keagan slumped down on his desk like a drama queen and made exaggerated sobbing sounds. “Oh, woe is I, who hath questioned thy power of friendship.”

“Kaji stop that and get up! Your bag is gonna fall!”

That got a few snickers from the class. Picking himself up from his slump, Keagan beamed at Shizuke and Fiona. “Seriously guys, thanks for having my back.”

“Always,” Fiona said.

“I... _We_ won’t let Hawkmoth get to you again,” Shizuke said.

I peeled my eyes off them and slumped down my seat. For a split second, I imagined myself in their shoes: if either Blake or I became Scorch… If one of us gets controlled into killing the other against our will. Bile threatened to rise up my throat but I kept it down. What Hawkmoth did is despicable on the surface. Digging a little deeper, I realize how truly twisted and inhumane her use of the Butterfly Miraculous is.

This isn’t just Ladybug and Chat Noire’s fight. This could be anyone’s fight, and only two are lucky enough to be given a Miraculous to fight back with. Two are given the power to rise and fight for the people who can’t do it themselves. True heroes.

… Wouldn’t the Black Cat Miraculous be better off with someone who better fits that description?

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Dismissal finally came, and Shizuke once again shot out of the classroom. I threw Keagan and Fiona a confused look. His friends just shrugged at his antics. I waved them and my brother goodbye and ran to catch up to the eccentric glasses boy.

Luck was on my side for once when it started to rain. That should at least slow him down. He’s by the lockers. I couldn’t help but snicker at the situation. Who would’ve thought that the day would come that I would ever need to chase and corner a guy?

Since I wasn’t carrying all of my books like he is, I was faster. Before he can grab his umbrella, I snatched it and held it just out of his reach.

“Hello there! I believe we have something to talk about,” I greeted, while expertly twirling his umbrella around my fingers.

His shoulders tensed. He recognized my voice. Being a model student that he is, he wouldn’t dare to drop all his precious books just to fight me over his umbrella.

I smirked. Caught him right where I wanted.

“What do you want?” he angrily huffed, most of his face partially obscured by the books he was clumsily balancing on his arms.

I smoothly picked up the top three books so I can see his face. Hmm… He’s actually not that bad looking for a nerd now that I’m looking at him up close. Small button nose, neat bluish black hair, warm brown eyes offset by his square, thick-rimmed glasses… He’s the kind of good looking that’s unassuming until you get a nice long look at him and realize his potential to clean up nicely.

His brown eyes are lividly glaring at me. Better cut straight to the point.

“I want to apologize for being rude to your friend,” I stated in a business tone, while putting those books away back into his locker. He didn’t seem to mind.

“Is that it? Okay. Sure. Apology accepted. Can you please give me my umbrella back? I have someplace else to be,” he hurriedly said.

I frowned. He is completely shrugging me off. He tried to take his umbrella back, but I cut him off.

“Look, can you just slow down for a minute and hear me out?”

“You wanted to apologize, and I accepted your apology. What more do you want?”

“A lot of things actually,” without really thinking about it, that just slipped out of my mouth.

I want the partner fighting by my side to be my brother. I want Hawkmoth to be taken down. I want to be a hero… I want to know what it truly means to be a hero… to understand why they left me and Blake behind... I want to know why I’m chosen to be the Black Cat when there’s no need for one.

“But we don’t always get what we want.”

“… You’re not wrong about that,” Shizuke said. His tense shoulders loosened and his glare softened to a look of sympathy… Or maybe it’s pity. “Sometimes, it’s less about getting what you want, and more about having what you need.”

There’s something about the way he said that that made me feel like he knows exactly what he’s talking about. It feels like if there’s anyone in this school who could understand what I’m going through, it would be him.

I shook that thought out of my head. Focus Blair!

“I wasn’t there when that… _incident_ happened,” I said, avoiding the name ‘Scorch’. “But that doesn’t excuse my lack of sensitivity approaching the topic. You three were clearly deeply affected, and-“

“I wasn’t there either.”

That’s surprising. With the way he reacted, I thought he had a front row seat watching his best guy friend burn down the school and his best lady friend along with it.

“But I should’ve been. My friends needed me, but I couldn’t be there for them,” Shizuke looked me in the eye, his brown eyes full of sincerity. “I shouldn’t be mad at you for not understanding how this affects us. Unlike _some_ people, at least you’re not treating Kaji like he’s a monster.”

He even gave me a convenient excuse for my lack of tact. I should just leave it there and move on.

“He’s just a victim of Hawkmoth. Probably the first of many after the heroes failed to capture her,” I couldn’t help but bitterly spat.

It was all my fault, really. Things were going well, Ladybug already had the Lucky Charm out, but I just had to go and let myself get fatally injured.

“Hey! They did their best!” glasses boy defended. Woops. My disappointment must’ve been too obvious.

“Their best wasn’t enough,” I flatly said. “Hawkmoth is still out there and she can still make monsters out of anyone in this city.”

“That’s why the heroes are having an announcement at the City Square! They will explain the situation to help us better prepare! They are doing what they can to protect the citizens!”

I scoffed. The way this guy is talking, he makes it sound like I’m some great hero. That was all Ladybug. He may have been a moody mess, but at least his heart was in the right place. All Chat Noire did was think about herself. Where did that get her?

Shizuke frowned, eyes glinting behind his glasses as if he’s challenging me. “What?”

“How can you still have so much faith in them after they failed?” I said with a sardonic smirk and crossed my arms over my chest. “I’m sure you’ve seen Keagan’s video too. They were lucky that Hawkmoth didn’t just finish them off when she had the chance.”

That’s the one thing I couldn’t figure out about Hawkmoth. She had us at her mercy. She could’ve taken the two Miraculous she wanted… Yet she didn’t. And it frustrates me that I can’t figure out why.

Shizuke’s nose scrunched up as he furrowed his brows in deep concentration. After a short while, he said, “Yeah, they were lucky. But that doesn’t change the fact that they did everything they could to stop Hawkmoth. Especially Chat Noire.”

Had I been drinking something, I would’ve spat it all out after hearing his statement.

“You can’t be serious.”

Now the bespectacled boy looked downright indignant. “I am! What do you have against Chat Noire?!”

I rolled my eyes. “Let me guess, you’re a fanboy? Well before you get all defensive about your new waifu, let me ask you: What’s the point of her being here?” I raised a hand and began counting down with my fingers as I enumerated, “She can’t return anyone to normal. She can’t fix anything. She can’t stop Hawkmoth…” I put my hand down and glared at the nerd. “The best she could do was to take a sword to the gut so Ladybug could stick around to fix everything. Is that what passes for a hero nowadays? Someone who’d die unable to stop one bad guy?”

My parents may have died, but at least they stopped the bad guys. The people of Helios could live in peace for a couple more years thanks to them. But what about me? I would’ve died not even able to stop one. Some hero I was.

Meanwhile, the blue-black haired bespectacled nerd was downright seething with a glare that could give Fiona a run for her money.

“Chat Noire is a true hero and I will not stand by and let you belittle her efforts!”

My eyes widen at what he said. The way he said it, there’s not a single shred of doubt.

Shizuke took a pause to calm himself down. Taking a deep breath, he continued.

“Ladybug may have been the first to jump into a fight against Scorch but Chat Noire was the one who ended it. When the people of Helios were losing faith and were ready to turn against them just because Hawkmoth spouted a pack of lies, Chat Noire was the one who set them all straight. Chat Noire wouldn’t have gotten stabbed if Ladybug didn’t stumble in the middle of their fight against Hawkmoth. She showed nothing but bravery and level-headedness where everyone else was swept away with all the chaos Hawkmoth brought. She’s a great hero! So don’t you dare talk about her like she’s done nothing right when the city clearly needs a hero like her!”

Shizuke suddenly snapped his mouth shut. And just like that, he went from a fierce defender to a sheepish and awkward teenage boy like any other.

He may not have been there, but he saw everything… And yet he still believes in me.

“I better go,” Shizuke said, breaking our awkward staring contest.

Looking at the clock hung up the door, I saw it’s already four thirty. I think I’ve kept him long enough...

“Are you gonna attend the heroes’ announcement?” I asked. Why else would he be in a rush-

“I’ve got stuff to do,” he said, gesturing to the books he was carrying.

“I see.”

Why do I feel disappointed? One person not attending shouldn’t make a difference… But this is the one person who still believes in me despite everything he saw.

“May I…?” he asked, a hand reaching out for his umbrella in my hand.

“Oh,” I put the umbrella on top of his pile of books.

The atmosphere around us suddenly felt heavy. I feel like I have to do something about it. I don’t want to leave things like this.

“Just know that I’m sorry about what happened to your friend,” I said in a hopefully comforting tone. “His feelings were taken advantage of. He shouldn’t feel too bad about it. Noor-“ I bit my tongue. Crud. That just slipped. Then again, it’s not like he knows who Nooroo is. I could just pass it off as a stammer. “Nor should you.”

There’s just something about this guy that makes me feel comfortable around him. Not in the same way as my brother, but I get the feeling it can get there someday. All too soon, that feeling is gone.

“Right,” he said with a more clipped voice.

The tension is back with a vengeance. Just when I thought we were starting to get along, the atmosphere suddenly went cold, and it’s not just because of the ongoing rain outside.

“… See you around then, Shizuke?”

“Of course,” he mechanically said.

It’s like I took one step forward, then two steps back with him.

Shizuke turned away from me and made his way to the door. Then, just a step away from the exit, he stopped. His shoulders shook but he didn’t turn around to face me. With a voice full of certainty, he said:

“The heroes will get her one day. I believe in that.”

Heroes, huh? The only hero around here is Ladybug. But this guy somehow believes Chat Noire is just as heroic as Ladybug, if not more so. The way he called us heroes, it’s like Ladybug and Chat Noire are equals – it’s like he has so much faith in the both of us, not just Ladybug…

So maybe I had been lacking something to be considered a true hero… But here’s someone who believes I am one. And maybe, just maybe, he’s not the only one counting on me.

“I’ve got a speech to crash,” I muttered to myself.

Knowing Ladybug, he’s going to need all the help he can get once he faces the press. Luckily for him, I’m good with the press.

Shizuke got his umbrella into one of his hands and opened it by the time he was out the door and into the rain. If he didn’t have his books, I bet he would be running by now.

I’ll just have to set him aside and worry about him later. At present, I have more important things to worry about. I ran through the rain and ducked into a small alleyway under a fire escape. If the rain was good for anything, it’s keeping people trapped inside and keeping the streets empty.

“Ready to go, Plagg?”

Plagg huffed inside my purse. “I didn’t know Chat Noire needed to be there too.”

“Well someone’s gotta save Ladybug from a pack of wolves armed with mikes and cameras.”

“Do we really have to?”

I rolled my eyes. My kwami is truly a bottomless well of support.

“Plagg, claws out!”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

As the time for Ladybug’s scheduled public press conference came closer, the rain was steadily easing up. It’s like the weather is trying to help him get through this undisturbed. Surprisingly, I got to the City Square first before Ladybug. A crowd of reporters were already there and wasted no time snapping pictures of me as I landed on top of the city founder’s statue. Normally, I’d be posing for the camera but I’m not in the mood. My attention was focused on looking for any signs of Ladybug. I would’ve thought he would be the punctual type. I guess I was wrong.

Just two minutes before our scheduled start, I heard the whizzing sound of Ladybug’s yoyo and soon enough he came swinging in… With Keagan and Fiona in tow. The bug hero landed at the base of the city founder’s statue, carefully setting down my two classmates. As soon as they landed, the reporters quickly pounced on the curious trio. Cameras as far as the eye can see flashed like a glittering ocean as the reporters asked them a million questions at the same time that they just mushed together into discernable sounds.

I take back comparing the reporters to a pack of wolves. Seeing them now, they’re more like a school of piranhas who smelled the blood of a certain bug hero, the girl he saved, and the former villain who tried to kill her - a very interesting trio. Who wouldn’t want a scoop of that? This cat better come to their rescue.

I jumped off the city founder’s statue with a loud hoot to catch their attention, pirouetted in the air before landing in a bow between Ladybug and the reporters.

“Chat Noire! You came!” Ladybug looked just about ready to hug me in gratitude. A complete one-eighty from the cold reception I got yesterday.

I sprung back up with a smirk and winked at Ladybug.

“Is there anywhere else you’d rather I’d be?”

Rather than getting annoyed at my sassy remark, his smile just got wider.

“I’m glad you’re here.”

That made me pause. He really does seem genuinely happy to see me… Like he really needed me and I came through for him.

The uproar of reporters reminded me of their existence.

I spun my staff, extended it, and balanced it over my squared shoulders, like an improvised one-person barrier that’s not about to budge for them.

“Settle down people! We know you have a lot of questions, and we’re willing to answer them! All we ask of you is to please listen to what Ladybug has to say first! He’s here to make an announcement!”

The reporters quickly backed off. There were murmurs among them and they raised more boom mikes. At least they stopped talking for the most part.

Ladybug shot me a grateful smile. This was his idea after all. He should be the first one bite the bullet. Or dip his toe into the pool of piranhas. He ducked under my staff and stepped forward.

Before he can get a word out, we heard screams coming from the back of the crowd. Ladybug and I quickly prepared for an attack. We were anticipating either another corrupted champion or Hawkmoth herself. What we got instead was a swarm of purple butterflies fluttering just outside the gates.

The throngs of people wisely avoided Hawkmoth’s creepy little minions as they entered City Square. The akumas gave off a toxic purple glow as they slowly fluttered towards the city founder’s statue. They stopped a few feet in front of us, where they flew into a swirling formation that got tighter and tighter until it took on a familiar shape.

If her intention was to creep us out, I’m sad to say she succeeded. There in front of us stood a life sized form of Hawkmoth completely made out of akumas. She even made them go through the effort of forming gaps for her glowing eyes and mouth.

**_“Hello,_ heroes _,”_** she said, her tone dripping with sarcasm when she called us ‘heroes’. **_“Mind if I crash your little speech ceremony?”_**

Ladybug visibly bristled beside me with clenched fists. He glared down at her with barely contained anger and asked, “What do you want?”

**_“Your Miraculous, of course. Have I not made myself clear yesterday?”_ **

“Then let me rephrase my question,” Ladybug sassily quipped. “What do you plan to do with our Miraculous?”

**_“I promise you, I only mean well.”_ **

I snorted. “ _That_ coming from the one who tried to burn down the school? I’m not buying it.”

The butterflies scattered then reformed less than three feet in front of us.

**_“Pot meet kettle, kitty,”_** Hawkmoth mocked in a sing song voice, her form of butterflies dispersed and reformed right next to me. Her form leaned down to whisper into my ear. **_“I can sense your feelings. We’re more alike than you think.”_**

I shuddered at the thought of being compared to a villain. I may be selfish, but I’m using my powers for good! I don’t go around making anyone else do my dirty work! I’m not like her!

**_“Try as you might to be a hero, you’re nothing more than a selfish lonely little girl still crying for the loss of her-“_ **

“ENOUGH!”

When I tried to bat her away, she scattered and reformed behind us. I glared at her form, daring her to finish that sentence. While she’s not wrong, it’s not her place to dig out my issues! I don’t want anyone’s pity! Pity wouldn’t bring them back!

**_“You know, I can give you the life you want.”_ **

I nearly dropped my guard. No. I shouldn’t let her talk me into anything. She’s a liar! She can’t bring back the dead! She can’t…

**_“All you need to do is to give me your-”_ **

Before she can finish her sentence, Ladybug’s yoyo shot from behind me and decapitated her. The brief silence allowed me enough time to calm down and not fall for Hawkmoth’s bait.

“Our answer hasn’t changed Hawkmoth,” Ladybug spoke up with a firm commanding voice. “We’re not giving them up.”

The creepy little akumas crawled back up to fix her head and made a grinning face that wouldn’t look out of place in a horror movie.

**_“Too bad. We had great teamwork.”_ **

Hawkmoth’s mocking laughter echoed everywhere. Ladybug and I took defensive positions. She didn’t go after either of us as expected. It was all a ruse to get past us towards her real target. Ladybug only managed to pull Fiona way, but it was too late for Keagan. He’s now trapped in a vortex of akuma.

**_“You made for a wonderful distraction, kitty.”_ **

It became clear what Hawkmoth’s planning to do, why her akumas were purple instead of white like yesterday. She planned to transform someone into a villain from the start. And not just anyone would do, she wanted to pick someone who would make a huge statement, someone who can cause so much unrest in the public just for transforming, someone everyone already sees as a threat.

Keagan Gerald Aurelio-Ashworth is the perfect choice.

He’s the mayor’s son, the ‘Prince of Helios’, a person with a lot of influence in the city. Keagan may be putting on a brave face by carrying on like normal but of all the people in the city, no one’s more distraught at the prospect of turning into a supervillain than him. Trapping him in a flurry of corrupted butterflies he couldn’t hope to escape is an effective way to build up his negative emotions.

“We have to get him out of there!” I tried to break into the whirlwind of akuma, but the butterflies made for a surprisingly impenetrable defence. Magic is my only explanation for this.

It still could’ve been worse. Keagan could’ve been somewhere else, like halfway across the city where neither of us could even be there to even try to stop him from transforming or protect civilians from his first wave of attacks. Lucky Ladybug brought him along.

Fiona struggled against Ladybug’s hold. The reporters finally caught on to what’s going on and left before Keagan could transform. Except for Fiona, no one wants to have a front row seat for Scorch’s rampage. Her loyalty to her maybe-more-than-a-friend is something to wonder at.

**_“Children like you shouldn’t be given so much power.”_ **

“Neither should psychopaths like you, yet here we are,” I scanned the evil butterfly tornado for any weak points, but I couldn’t find any.

**_“Give me your Miraculous or I’ll make Scorch burn everyone into ashes!”_ **

At that threat, Ladybug finally snapped. Ladybug pushed Fiona towards me, quietly indicating to not let Fiona run towards the akumas (damn, she’s stronger than she looks), and strode towards the whirlwind of pure evil.

“Hawkmoth! You can threaten this city all you want, but know that we’ll always be there to stop you! Any supervillain you create, we will save them!” Ladybug pointed up at the swirling mass of akumas while his other hand was spinning his yoyo faster and faster. “It doesn’t matter how long it will take. We WILL find you! And when that day comes, YOU’LL be the one giving US your Miraculous!”

He threw his yoyo at the city founder’s statue’s highest point, and shot himself upwards. Once he was above the tornado, he let himself get sucked in, right where Keagan is.

For a few tense moments, nothing happened. Even Fiona stopped struggling against me and looked on with anticipation. Then lights flashed within the vortex, swiping at all directions until all the akumas disappeared. There stood Ladybug and Keagan.

Nobody dared make a sound. Ladybug walked up towards the base of the city founder’s statue. He spread his arms out and loudly declared, “Citizens of Helios! There is nothing to fear! I, Ladybug and my partner, Chat Noire are here and we will do everything in our power to keep you safe!”

He raised his hand that was holding his yoyo and a swarm of white butterflies rushed out and flew away into the starry night sky.

The crowd cheered our names. I can feel their relief and excitement all around me. Ladybug’s unwavering faith in us being the city’s newest protectors made his promise feel more like a fact. I remembered a quote from my favorite Batman movie: _“Sometimes the truth isn't good enough. Sometimes people deserve more. Sometimes people deserve to have their faith rewarded.”_

No wonder the crowds were chanting Ladybug’s name more than mine. I felt envy bubbling inside me, but there’s also some relief in seeing him standing tall and proud like there’s nothing in the world that can bring him down. It’s like I had a glimpse at his full potential. For once, I don’t think my partnership with Ladybug’s completely doomed.

I dropped my grip on Fiona and tilted my head towards Keagan’s general direction. “You might wanna check on Princey over there.”

Fiona just gave me a nod before running towards Keagan… and punched him in the arm. Apparently, Keagan pushed her away just when the akumas were forming a tornado around him and now she’s mad because he dared to protect her. This lead to them bickering like an old married couple with Ladybug playing peacemaker between them.

I snuck behind Ladybug and tapped him on the shoulder. He nearly jumped. I smirked at him. Even after such an impressive display, he’s still a dork.

“That was quite flashy of you, Bugsy.~ Didn’t think you had it in you,” I teased as I expertly twirled my baton around my fingers.

He was positively beaming.

“I learned from the best.”

I could get used to working with him.

From the side just behind Ladybug, I can see Keagan grinning at us. I would later label that particular grin as his ‘shipping grin’.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Time flew as the questions passed by one after the other. After a while, Ladybug took a step back and indirectly elected me to be our team’s spokesperson. To be fair, I doubt Ladybug had much experience with being surrounded by flashing cameras scrutinizing him down to the smallest zit. Being a model is finally paying off!

“What do you call those creepy purple butterflies? There’s something magical about them,” asked a well-dressed young woman.

“They’re called akuma,” I said.

“ _Akuma_?!” Ladybug asked with wide eyes staring at me, looking scandalized. It’s as if I said something I wasn’t supposed to say in public. Judging from the way he pronounced ‘akuma’, maybe I did in a different language.

“Yes. That’s what I was told. Is there anything wrong with that?” I asked, careful not to mention Plagg’s name in front of the reporters.

Ladybug folded his arms, looking uncomfortable. “Well, it’s just that I think it’s a little scary to refer to those butterflies as ‘demons’...”

I placed a closed fist over my chin in a thinking pose. “It does make sense. Those ‘akuma’ target people with negative emotions and bring up people’s ‘inner demons’. It’s a fitting name, don’t you think?”

“Here’s a better question for ye: Why did Chat Noire do nothin’ ta get rid of ‘em ‘akuma’?” asked a particularly rude grouchy old man.

“Because Ladybug’s the only one who can purify them,” I said with a smirk that I’m not really feeling right now.

“Then what’s yer purpose? You his sidekick or somethin’?”

It bothers me more than I’d like to admit that Ladybug’s powers are more useful than mine. Even now, I question my purpose in being chosen. My powers have nothing to do with recovering the Butterfly Miraculous or saving its victims.

“No,” Ladybug cuts in, placing himself between me and the rude reporter. “She’s my _partner_ and I wouldn’t have made it this far without her.”

I’m… I’m actually a little touched. I can feel my heart swell a bit at his words. But I still prefer to handle this on my own. I lightly pushed Ladybug aside to get back to the rude reporter. I smirked and said, “That’s right. I kick butt while he fixes stuff.”

Their questions after that were easier. They ranged from serious topics like ‘how do we plan on capturing Hawkmoth?’ to less serious topics like ‘why did you choose Ladybug and Chat Noire to be your hero names?’ with the occasional weird questions like ‘were you guys bitten by a radioactive ladybug/cat?’. Hah. This whole thing is bringing out the superhero fan in everyone.

It’s a relief nobody asked me about what Hawkmoth was saying to try to get me to her side. It seems like no one besides Ladybug heard her. As loud as he is, I’m glad he has enough tact not to ask me about it right now.

_“You know, I can give you the life you want.”_

The Butterfly Miraculous’ power to persuade shouldn’t be underestimated. I knew she was just trying to distract us and didn’t seriously expect me to join her side, but I still felt a small tug within me that wanted to take her up on that offer. Ladybug being there helped me concentrate on the present, but Hawkmoth’s words still left me longing for the past. I’d give anything to have them back. But as much as I miss my parents, nothing can bring them back to life. If there was a way, the cost is probably something I can’t agree to. I’ve seen Fullmetal Alchemist enough times to know that it never ends well.

“What’s your motivation to be a hero? I mean, if you don’t mind me asking,” asked a nervous young woman.

I couldn’t stop the smile that made its way to my face.

“I’ve always wanted to be a hero. Ever since I was a little girl… I’ve always looked up to them.”

I stopped before anyone could notice how my voice is starting to tremble, letting my words linger in the air for a bit.

_“Try as you might to be a hero, you’re nothing more than a selfish lonely little girl still crying for the loss of her-“_

Parents. That’s what Hawkmoth was going to say. I looked straight at the camera as if somehow, Hawkmoth can hear me right now.

“So here I am.”

My parents may be gone, but I’m still here. I’ll continue the work they left behind. I’ll become a hero they can be proud of.

“And what about you, Ladybug? What motivates you?”

Ladybug jumped at the sudden attention.

“Uhm… My reason-I just, uh…”

He fidgeted for a bit as he looked around the crowd. He must’ve found his answer when he calmed down and said this with complete certainty:

“I just want everyone to be safe, that’s all.”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Soon enough, it was time to go. Ladybug was giving Keagan another pep talk, and people were taking pictures. It’s a good show, this way people will be less jumpy around Keagan with Ladybug being chummy with him. But to Ladybug, it’s more than that. He genuinely wanted Keagan to be okay.

“You did a great job holding out for as long as you did.”

“W-what?” Keagan’s face grew flustered as Ladybug approached. “Oh, I didn’t really do much… I just…”

“Even before Hawkmoth’s swarm surrounded you, she had plenty of chances to transform you again but you didn’t. You’re a strong person, don’t you ever forget that.”

Keagan shook his head, his gaze glued to the floor. “I have you to thank for that. If you hadn’t believed in me… Told me I wasn’t a monster that night… I might’ve…”

“Kaji, listen to the dude in tight red spandex,” Fiona pipes up and walks directly in front of Keagan, who was conveniently already looking down so she can look at him eye to eye. “In your own way, you fought off Hawkmoth and you succeeded in keeping her out this time. You should be proud of yourself.”

Keagan regained his princely composure. He affectionately ruffled Fiona’s hair, and she huffed in return.

“Okay Fuyu, you have a point,” he told her, before looking up to face Ladybug. “I’m still thankful. You saved me.”

Ladybug face brightened up. I could’ve sworn Keagan looked just about ready to melt then and there. Can’t blame him, even I would feel some warm and fuzzy feelings if anyone would smile at me like that.

“You’re welcome.”

Ladybug is a bleeding heart. He sympathizes with other people’s plights easily, unlike me.

I used to see that kind of trait as a weakness. It turns people into suckers who’d trust complete strangers only to get conned. It makes people fight for a cause they couldn’t see through to the end. It made my parents leave my brother and I to fend for ourselves while they’re out getting themselves killed by monsters to save a city full of people who never even thanked them.

I never believed that sympathy could stop a rampaging monster… But that’s exactly what happened earlier.

Ladybug gave Keagan a reason to resist. He gave people an ideal to strive towards. He gave them hope that they can fight Hawkmoth’s control. He gave the people of this city a reason to put their faith in us.

All things I failed to do.

I can’t completely change myself overnight. I can’t just wake up one day and realize what my parents stood for that was worth their lives and embrace it with open arms. I don’t think I could ever become a genuine all-loving hero like Ladybug, but I should still try to be more sympathetic to others.

With the kind of enemy we have, it’s the best weapon we’ve got.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

It took some effort in getting the Liungs to stop fussing over me for coming home late. I managed to shake them off by showing them a receipt from a diner I passed by for a quick dinner. It always pays to be prepared with evidence around them. It was easy to excuse myself by telling them I decided to eat out but stayed in for longer than I expected because Hawkmoth made an appearance. Blake was a little harder to convince, but I managed.

I marched straight up to my room. Plagg quickly devoured the slices of camembert I pulled out of my purse and flew straight to my garbage bin making scraps of paper fly out from whatever it is he’s doing in there. In a lot of ways, Plagg is like a normal cat. If only his diet consisted of kibbles instead of camembert…

But there are more important matters.

“Plagg, is it possible for Miraculous holders to get akumatized?”

I’ve been wondering that since Hawkmoth tried to persuade me to her side just earlier. Sure, it was all just a ruse to get past our guard and get to Keagan, but the fact is, for a fleeting moment, I almost fell for it. Considering how much of a wreck Ladybug was yesterday, and how I almost fell for her words, it’s a very concerning possibility that our kwamis should warn us about.

Plagg poked his head out of the garbage bin he was exploring. “Akumatized? That’s not a word.”

I rolled my eyes. “It is now. So, is it or is it not possible?”

Plagg let out a loud yawn. “What? I didn’t hear you over my yawn. Oh, would you look at that! It’s past eleven! Time for bed! G‘night!”

And the little god of destruction flew to my laundry pile and snored so loudly he had to be faking it. I went over and poked him, trying to get him awake, but he didn’t even twitch. I groaned in frustration.

“A ‘yes’ or a ‘no’ would’ve sufficed, stupid cat.”

With how evasive he was, it would be best if I take that as a ‘yes’. It’s possible it didn’t work because I was transformed and didn’t have anything on me that could be possessed- my suit was 100% magic, and my ring already had an (obnoxious) occupant. But what if I wasn’t transformed? Am I as vulnerable as everyone else? What if I get akumatized? Or worse, what if Ladybug gets akumatized?

Looks like the simple answer to all this is to stay on guard from now on.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Days passed by in a blur. As expected, more akumas that cropped up but none of the victims were accused of being monsters and got proper help beyond Ladybug’s miraculous cure. The mayor saw to it that former akumas have free access to services such as parameds and counselors. With his son as the first akuma, it’s not surprising he’s become a very vocal supporter of akuma victims. With the growing number of people getting akumatized or having loved ones turning into akumas and his continued support, I can see him winning the next election over this. It made for great press, and he garnered a lot of sympathy. More importantly, it helped eased people from thinking of akuma victims as monsters.

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

Keeping secrets from Blake got progressively harder when he started to notice some changes in me brought on by my super-secret hero work. Like the fact that I started wearing a silver ring when I’ve always been more of a necklace kind of girl.

“Where did you get that ring?” Blake asked, pointing his fork at the silver ring on my right ring finger. We were having lunch at the mall after our photo shoot got cancelled because an akuma named Charmer went after Blake.

I did my usual tactic when dealing with curious twins: feign ignorance and sneakily divert the topic.

“Why? Like it?” I said while directing my ring’s shine to his eyes.

Blake squinted with a scowl before shielding his eyes. “I like it. It’s just not your style.”

“And what exactly is my style?”

“Flamboyant.”

“Haha. Very funny.”

Blake grabbed my ringed hand and examined my Miraculous, “Seriously, that ring’s so plain. Not a single decoration. It doesn’t go with your aesthetic,” then looked over me meaningfully, “At. All.”

I pulled back my hand and shot him a meaningful look in return. “I don’t want to hear that from a guy who wears a red-orange band shirt with a pair of purple pants.”

Blake rolled his eyes while raising his hands in mock surrender. “Chill, sis. I’m just curious about it. Sheesh. No need to pick on my choices in clothing – even though I’m rocking the look.”

This is just the beginning. There will be more changes to come that I’d be hard pressed to hide like the stench of camembert, my absences, and the muscles I’ll inevitably gain. I am so not looking forward to explaining away all that. On the bright side, I’ll finally be able to beat Blake at arm wrestling.

“Blair Crawford?”

There we were, hot model twins minding our own business eating spaghetti when trouble appeared in the form of an awkward fanboy hoping for a date. We gave him identical unimpressed glares. Mister tall blond and scraggly flinched. He should know by now that he doesn’t stand a chance.

“What? Can’t you see we’re busy?” I snappily said.

In a matter of days, I’ve learned that my heroic debut resolution, which is trying to be more sympathetic to others, is easier said than done. It’s hard to be sympathetic when I’m already in a mood around fans thanks to Charmer this morning.

“I, uh, I’ve always admired you. For so long, I love the way your eyes gleam…”

And there he goes with his laundry list of shallow compliments. It’s like I’m not aware I’m gorgeous. I better cut him off before he gets any more dumb ideas.

“Listen, dude, I appreciate your admiration but I’m not looking for a date. Sorry.”

“Oh. Well, how about we start out as frien-“

“I’m not interested in general, so _please_ , do us all a favor and move on with your life. I’m sure there are plenty of girls out there that you can awkwardly hit on. Now, shoo!”

I turned away from the sniveling wuss only to see my brother looking constipated.

“What? Are those meatballs turning over in your stomach?”

“He’s gonna turn into an akuma.”

“Great.”

Blake crossed his arms. “You should’ve been gentler with him. You didn’t have to be so harsh with rejecting him.”

“And give him false hope that one day, after years of friendship, I could fall for him? No way. Might as well make it quick so he can be free to look for love elsewhere ASAP.”

“He could get akumatized any minute now because of how you rejected him.”

“He could still get akumatized later if I string him along. It’s a lose-lose situation bro, I’m just picking the quick and clean way.”

I looked around us for a possible place to hide. Better think about my options before the akuma gets here…

“Hello, my darling.~”

Too late.

“I am Stunner!” the akuma introduced with a flip of his glittering blond hair. He went on and on about how he’s in my league now and that I should go on a date with him or else.

“Oh, whatever shall I do?” I overdramatically exclaimed, cutting him off from his villain monologue as I stood up from my chair with my hands over my heart like a distressed damsel.

Blake rolled his eyes but played along and stood up too.

“I am but a helpless damsel with nothing to defend myself with,” as I said that, I walked around my table so it now stands between me and the akuma to buy me a few extra seconds once I book it.

Stunner didn’t even notice.

“Please, oh dazzling man in bronze glitter! Have mercy on me!”

“I’ll be merciful as long as you agree to be my girlfrie-“

I threw what’s left of my lunch on his face and ran away with Blake in tow.

“Something tells me that this is how it’s going to be from here on out,” Blake muttered.

“Ya think?”

 

0-0-0-0-0

 

At some point in my mad sprint around the mall, I managed to lock Blake away in an elevator. I could’ve transformed then and there. Unfortunately, the akuma caught up so I had to keep running.

I ran past Monsieur Ladyblogger and his friends, hoping a hit in the Ladyblog would alert Ladybug to get his lady-butt over here. Keagan gave me a friendly wave, Fiona shot me a neutral stare, and Shizuke was flat out glaring at me. I don’t even know what I did to get on this guy’s hit list. Try as I might to smooth things over between us, he just won’t lighten up or at least explain what I did to piss him off. I’ve given up at this point, which is a little sad. It would’ve been nice to have a friend that would wax poetic about how awesome my superhero alter ego is. Talk about a love-hate relationship.

It wasn’t long before I heard the akuma tripped, and there stood Ladybug, lassoing him away from me. I shot him a grateful smile, which he ignored in favor of glaring at the akuma. I quickly ducked away somewhere hidden to transform.

“Wakey wakey Plagg. It’s time to transform.”

“What? Again?!”

“I know. Hawkmoth must be having a slow day and decided to kill time by akumatizing people. C’mon, time to go.”

“I’m gonna need an extra roll of cheese after this.”

Typical Plagg, always thinking about cheese at a time like this.

“Of course. Plagg, claws out!”

Plagg grumbled out more complaints before getting sucked into my ring and transforming me. I ran back towards the akuma and jumped into the fray.

My partnership with Ladybug still has its hurdles to overcome. Sure, I developed some respect for the bumbling bug after the Scorch incident, but that doesn’t change the fact that we have very different views on how things should be done while sharing the same stubbornness with our ways. Even now, we’re still arguing about patrol schedules.

While I’d still rather be the main hero, I get that I’m not the kind of hero this city needs most right now.

But it’s not all bad. Ladybug and I worked almost seamlessly together. Our teamwork is improving day by day. We make up for each other’s weaknesses. He makes me feel like I’m still needed. As different as our ideals are, we both want the same thing.

He’s like the Superman to my Batman.

The fight with Stunner didn’t last long. After casting his miraculous cure, Ladybug approached me. He’s still a little shy and easily flustered around me. I guess the awkwardness of crying in front of a stranger you’ve only known for a day lasts longer than I thought.

“So, uh, pound it?” he asked, hesitantly raising his fist towards me.

I smiled and connected my own. He may not be my twin brother, the one I wanted to be my crime fighting partner all my life, but Ladybug is doing his best. He deserves a chance, just as much as I wanted to believe Chat Noire deserves this chance to be a hero.

“Pound it.”

 

0-0-0-0-0

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Man, formatting here at AO3 is harder than I remember.  
> But Origins from Blair/Chat Noire's side is done! Yay!  
> Originally, I was planning on posting this like, after season 1 (which I plan on having 12 episodes) like how canon released origins at the end of season 1  
> But oh well. May as well get this out of the way.  
> There's still one 'flashback' episode set before the introductions but after origins.  
> Having this posted now may help me stop adding stuff here and finally establish something  
> ... not that it stopped me before hahaha
> 
> Shizuke/Ladybug's POV should be coming up soon  
> I'm not even gonna give myself a deadline this time


End file.
